Fire rips through Eastbourne Pier destroying roof

A devastating fire has torn through Eastbourne Pier.

The main roof of the pier, built in the East Sussex seaside town in the 1870s, has been completely destroyed, leaving only a metal skeleton.

The pier was evacuated. No-one was injured in the fire and police said it was not thought to be suspicious.

The fire service said late on Wednesday the incident was being scaled down and 30 firefighters were expected to stay at the scene overnight.

Eastbourne Borough Council leader David Tutt said he was hopeful the pier could be repaired and understood the fire had been started by an electrical fault.

"The emergency services have done a fantastic job," he said.

"The fact that as far as we're aware that nobody's hurt - we're not aware of anybody unaccounted for - they evacuated the site very quickly and they've managed to contain it to that front dome so there's hope of getting the pier restored.

"The building which has been affected is the largest dome on the pier, and it has been badly damaged - but further down it looks as it's always looked.

"My understanding... [is] it looks as if there was a problem with electrics in the wall of the dome between the two layers of the wall there and that seems to be where it started."

The blaze broke out behind some wood panelling in the arcade building and billowing smoke filled the air.

Sian Ellis, a hotel manager in the town, said it was an "absolute red, molten, mess of flame and smoke".

"We've just had another explosion there and it's very, very frightening and hugely saddening for the whole of the town," she said.

Fire minister Penny Mordaunt said she would be visiting Eastbourne "as a priority" to speak to local people and thank firefighters for their efforts.

"It is heart-breaking to see such a wonderful Victorian pier so damaged. Thankfully no-one appears to have been hurt," she said.

'Under control'

About 80 firefighters had tackled the blaze in the privately-owned pier, East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service said.

A fire service spokesman said at one stage: "Firefighters are using lifeboats to help tackle the fire from the sea and an aerial platform is being used as a water tower to prevent the fire from spreading on the shore side."

He said crews had gone onto the pier from the seaward end to stop the fire spreading further along the structure.

The pier was built in the 1870s

There are no reports of any injuries

The roof of the pier has been destroyed

About 80 firefighters were are at the pier during the height of the blaze

Firefighters also tackled the blaze from underneath the pier

Mark Sawyer, coxswain of Eastbourne Lifeboat, said: "The main structure is gone now and it's a metal shell."

Pier fires

• The Grand Pier in Weston-super-Mare was damaged by fires in 1930 and 2008

• Hastings Pier was almost destroyed by a fire on 5 October 2010

• West Pier in Brighton burned down in 2003

• The Indian Pavilion on Blackpool's North Pier was destroyed by fire in 1921

• South Parade Pier in Southsea was destroyed by a blaze in 1904

• Another fire in 1974 meant the pier needed rebuilding for a second time

Councillor Philip Ede, from Eastbourne Borough Council, who witnessed the fire, said: "It looks pretty drastic from where I'm standing.

"There's a lot of smoke and flames engulfing the first section of the pier. We pray the fire brigade can save as much of the building as possible."

Eastbourne Pier was evacuated

The entire roof appeared to be ablaze

Smoke and flames engulfed the front section of the pier

East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service said the fire was tackled from the sea

The iconic pier, pictured before the blaze, has been used in many films

Des Pritchard, East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service's chief fire officer, said: "Our firefighters have saved a huge amount of the pier - there's a great deal that's still there.

"It is very sad but pier fires are very difficult to fight and many result in the complete loss of the pier."

A police spokeswoman added: "It has been confirmed that the pier was safely and quickly evacuated and there was no-one trapped by the fire when it broke out.

"The fire is not believed to be suspicious at this time."

Ant Miller, who was on the beach when the fire broke out, said it quickly spread throughout the building.

"There's quite a warm breeze here in Eastbourne today so it took pretty quickly," he said.

"Within 20 minutes or so, lots of flames, lots of smoke. When we noticed it, it looked like the pier was evacuated pretty much immediately."

Eastbourne MP Stephen Lloyd said it looked like the pier had been saved from being completely destroyed.

"The good news is that we don't have a Brighton or Hastings scenario where the whole pier is destroyed," he said.

Airbourne, one of Eastbourne's biggest events, is due to take place on the seafront between 14 and 17 August.

The pier was built in the 1870s and, according to the Piers Society, previously had a theatre and a "camera obscura" built on it.

Today, a number of cafes, bars and a nightclub are situated along the pier.

It has featured in films and television programmes including the Michael Caine movie Last Orders and Brit flick Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging.

Hastings Pier was almost entirely destroyed by fire in 2010 and West Pier in Brighton burned down in 2003.

The BBC's Sarah Bell: My Eastbourne

As someone raised on the sunshine coast, seeing the pier in flames has left me feeling deeply sad and unsettled.

The symbol of the town, its Victorian structure was the constant backdrop to my childhood of chilly dips in the sea.

It even played a part in the social structure of teenage years - with the beaches either side reserved for the coolest kids.

Later it was where we would drink local cider and snog boys, in the years before nights out involved tottering up to the nightclub at the end.

Within an hour of the news my Facebook feed was filled with local friends expressing sadness and shock that a key part part of the town's history could be so easily destroyed.

I just hope that it can be restored and not suffer the fate of the structures in neighbouring towns.