Firefighters have been praised after leading terrified horses to safety during a farm inferno - but the brave rescuers couldn't save them all.

One horse owner said many horses would have perished without the quick-thinking crews. Despite their best efforts, the blaze claimed the lives of two horses.

More than 35 firefighters from across south Essex fought through the night under atrocious conditions to control the fire at Hovells Farm on the Five Bells roundabout in Basildon.

One lane of the A13 was closed for four hours as a huge cloud of smoke engulfed the road.

The fire started at 1.30am yesterday morning in a large barn packed with straw and spread rapidly to nearby stables.

Firefighters battled to release the ten terrified animals as flames roared just feet away. Sub-officer Gary Jeffery said: "The main priority was to release the horses.

"We started damping down the stables to stop the fire spreading. Smoke spreading to the stables was the biggest problem.

"Horses are by nature very highly strung and they were panicking. There were a few jumping around.

"The owners of the farm knew how to handle the horses and they helped us release them into a field."

The barn and stables were razed to the ground by the blaze. Families this morning arrived to be told whether their pets had survived.

Sub-officer Jeffery said: "There was a girl and her parents who came in the night but their horse was killed in the fire. She had owned the horse for years and years and was absolutely devastated."

Sue Goodrum, who owns three horses, said: "I heard about it and you just hope it isn't your horse.

"We really appreciate what the firemen did. Without them I hate to think what could've happened."

Fire crews were hampered in their attempts to tackle the fire by a lack of water hydrants.

An extra hose-laying engine from Hadleigh was called as firefighters sprinted 400 yards at a time to link hoses to the nearest hydrant.

Scenes of crime investigators were expected to spend yesterday sifting through the debris in an attempt to pinpoint the cause of the blaze.

Sub-officer Jeffery said: "It was a very intense blaze because of the straw. Rural fires are always very difficult and it was very hard work."

The vet who treated the horses said the two animals would have died painlessly.

He said: "These guys were on the ball in getting the horses out but they had a horrendous time. The thing collapsed and they could not get any more horses out.

"It would have been relatively quick for the ones who died. These hay fires go up so fast."

The south-bound lane of the A13 reopened at 6am. Traffic was also affected by an accident on the Southend-bound track close to the Tilbury junction.

An articulated lorry overturned and collided with the central reservation, spilling its load of grain across both carriageways just after 4.30am.

Although the driver was only slightly injured, the clear-up operation continued beyond 8.30am with London-bound traffic later being diverted down the Dock Approach Road following another accident involving a car and a motorcycle.

Dousing the flames - a firefighter keeps the blaze at bay while others lead the horses to safety

(Right) Razed to the ground - firefighters inspect the damage to Hovells Farm today

Pictures: ESSEX FIRE AND RESCUE SERVICE and ANDY PALMER

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.