Burgess Hill: Large fire causes 'significant structural' damage

Firefighters remain at the scene of the blaze an the industrial unit in Consort Way

A large blaze at an industrial unit in West Sussex has caused "significant structural" damage while firefighters remain at the scene for a second day.

Large plumes of black smoke could be seen billowing over the unit in Consort Way, Burgess Hill, after the fire started at about 15:00 BST on Monday.

Residents were urged to avoid the area and keep windows and doors closed.

The warehouse is used to stock hair and beauty products, including supplies of flammable products such as hairspray.

Speaking to BBC Radio Sussex, incident commander Richard Munday said the fire is "nearly out" and that fire crews remain at the scene "double checking for hot spots".

"With respect to fire fighting operations they have been drastically scaled back," he said, adding that attendance has been reduced to two fire engines and two special appliances.

Mr Munday said the building has been damaged "pretty significantly structurally" but surrounding buildings are largely undamaged.

"Hopefully, the impact to the local community business-wise will be fairly insignificant," he added.

Mr Munday said wet weather conditions have helped fire crews dampen down the building but flooding incidents elsewhere in Sussex have "stretched" resources.

He expects crews to leave the area in eight to 10 hours but urged residents to stay away until advised otherwise. The road also remains closed until firefighting operations cease.

The cause of the fire is not yet known and no causalities have been reported.

Aerial photos at the scene show the extent of the damage

The fire service said the fire caused "significant structural" damage to the building

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