Middle Barn Farm Shop destroyed by fire

Witnesses noticed smoke around 8pm on Sunday evening coming from the Middle Barn Farm Shop on the Barnhorn Road.

Nobody was hurt in the fire, which quickly spread through the hay-filled barn towards the Farm Shop.

Residents were warned to close their windows after crews recognised asbestos in the roofing.

Station Commander Steve Whittlesey said: "We tried to prevent it spreading to other farm buildings and assess where it's going from here.

"We could see the asbestos on the roof, in sheets. It pops, that's what it does under heat."

A police spokesman said intial concerns of the asbestos spreading towards Hooe were unfounded.

Firefighters from Bexhill, Eastbourne, Pevensey, Herstmonceux and Hastings fought the blaze with six appliances. Some members of the first crew were relieved at 3am, but firefighters were still attending the scene at midday on Monday.

Water supplies in the rural area are at low pressure and an Uckfield tanker brought extra water to the scene before refilling in Little Common.

Farm Tractors and diggers removed flaming bales of hay to a corner of a neighbouring field to be doused by firefighters.

The A259 was closed for approximately three hours as firefighters brought the blaze under control.

A Bexhill firefighter said: "When we first got here we could see smoke from a mile away. There were a couple of small explosions from cylinders inside."

A neighbouring famer said: "We was baling down by the Lamb Inn pub and just kept seeing all the black smoke.

"We came back up about 8.45pm. It was very thick. At first we thought it was a bonfire."