Second Pier Fire

Sunday, 11 May, 2003

Firefighters have been tackling another blaze at Brighton's historic West Pier.

East Sussex Fire Brigade were called at 0206 to reports that the ballroom at the shore end of the Grade I listed structure was on fire.

A dozen firefighters used water jets to tackle the fire, but later called for extra assistance just before 0900 after the fire appeared again in several places.

Around 60 calls were made to East Sussex Fire Brigade, which sent two crews from the city that were able to tackle the blaze from the shore.

This latest fire comes less than two months since a massive blaze destroyed the theatre at the far end of the pier. The West Pier Trust who own the pier believed the previous fire on the 28th of March 2003 was started deliberately, however police last week said they had no evidence to prove it was arson.

Whilst not as devastating as the previous fire, this latest incident is reported to have caused a "fair bit of damage" according to a fire service spokesman.

It is not known what the cause of this latest fire is.