Explosions wake residents as fire destroys barns

Three agricultural barns have been destroyed in a fire after emergency crews were forced to withdraw because of exploding cylinders.

East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service was called to the blaze in Ailies Lane, East Hoathly, shortly before midnight on Tuesday.

Firefighters established a 200m exclusion zone after cylinders exploded, prompting the evacuation of crews from the site.

BBC presenter Mike Ziolek said that he was "woken up by 15 explosions just after midnight".

Ziolek told BBC Radio Sussex: "It wasn't just two or three, I think I counted 15 or more explosions and it was more significant than fireworks.

"I looked out the window and the sky was alight with oranges and reds."

He said that the noise was enough to rattle his windows, adding it felt like "the house and the surroundings were shaking".

Fire control received more than 60 calls from members of the public reporting the fire as it spread across the rural area.

Crews set up ground monitors to deliver high‑volume water and the number of appliances increased from four to six as the fire escalated.

At 09:00 on Wednesday, the fire service said all people had been accounted for and the incident had been scaled back to two fire engines and two fire officers.

A spokesperson said police and ambulance had also been in attendance due to the scale of the incident.

They added: "Cylinders have cooled and crews are turning over and damping down to ensure pockets of fire are fully out.

"A fire investigation will take place in the coming days to understand the cause of the fire and gain any learning for the future."

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