Fire crews rushed to a fire in an office block in Pitsea Broadway, fearing people were trapped inside.

To crews from Basildon and two from Hadleigh tackled the blaze on the second floor last night and found that no one was trapped. Two people on the top floor were able to get out themselves.

Station officer at Basildon Doug Sylvester said: "When we got there we saw all the windows on the second floor open and flames coming out. People were at the window and though we initially thought they were trapped, they managed to get out."

A joint fire and police investigation is under way into the cause of the fire.

Published Tuesday July 13, 2004

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