Residents in Clacton evacuated as fire crews tackle huge blaze ripping through building

Essex County Fire and Rescue Service were called out to reports of a building fire on West Avenue in Clacton in the early hours of Monday morning.

The blaze completely destroyed the building, which locals have said is a furniture shop, and has affected the neighbouring building too.

The incident led to residents in the surrounding area being displaced while crews worked to extinguish the flames.

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Tendring District Council and the local Premier Inn set up a refuge centre for those who had been evacuated.

Residents were advised to 'keep all your windows and doors shut as there is a lot of smoke coming from the incident.'

Incident Commander Nick Singleton said: "The fire has been extinguished and crews will remain at the scene to monitor and dampen down any hotspots.

"I'd like to say a big thank you to the crews who worked extremely hard to stop the fire from spreading to nearby buildings.

"As well as a thank you to our emergency services partners for their help, the Premier Inn for providing a refuge centre and local residents for being patient with us while we deal with the incident.

"A fire investigation will be carried out to determine the cause of the fire when it is safe to do so."

An earlier update on the incident said that Jackson Road, Penfold Road, and Agate Road will be closed and will experience disruption while crews attend the incident.

Nigel Farage, MP for Clacton, said: "Emergency services did a great job evacuating 92 people to safety after a huge fire in Clacton town centre.

"80 of the residents have now returned to their homes.

"Thankfully, at this stage there are no casualties. Let’s hope it stays that way."