Firefighters were still damping down today after a raging inferno ripped through a farmyard barn in south Essex.
Smoke could be seen for miles as firefighters battled for more than three hours to bring the flames under control.
Crews arrived at the scene, at the junction of Mascalls Lane and Dark Lane, Brentwood, to be met by the sight of huge flames erupting from the building next to the home of sports entrepreneur Barry Hearn.
They wore breathing apparatus to get near the blaze only to find there were gas cylinders inside the burning building. Officers then had to pull back for their own safety and create a 200-metre exclusion zone around the area, closing off the road to traffic for more than an hour.
A spokesman for the fire service said: "We had no idea what sort of gases were in the cylinders, although we believe it was either liquid petroleum gas or welding gas, but you can't take any chances as an exploding cylinder can be very dangerous. Officers said they did not think the fire was started deliberately."
Published Wednesday, April 9, 2003
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