Firefighters were called to Southend Hospital yesterday after a light fitting caught fire.

Crews from Leigh and Southend went to Edmund Stone Ward at 10.40am after smoke in a treatment room set off the fire alarm.

Patients were able to remain on the main ward and staff turned off the electricity until crews arrived.

Firefighters used a thermal image camera to locate the cause of the problem - a fault with the transformer in the fitting.

Station commander Neil Fenwick said there was some smoke damage to the treatment room.

Published Thursday July 22, 2004

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