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Folkestone's Grand Burstin Hotel fire treated as suspected arson as 90 nearby residents are also evacuated

From the Newshound archive · first published 19 September 2026 · last updated 20 September 2026.

Fire burning at the Grand Burstin Hotel on Folkestone seafront, where more than 200 guests were forced into freezing temperatures after a blaze broke out in the basement shortly after 1am.
Fire burning at the Grand Burstin Hotel on Folkestone seafront, where more than 200 guests were forced into freezing temperatures after a blaze broke out in the basement shortly after 1am.

Ninety residents from neighbouring Pavilion Court have been evacuated after safety inspectors warned that the suspected arson fire at Folkestone's Grand Burstin Hotel had compromised the building's structural integrity. Kent Police are treating the blaze — which started at around 1am on Saturday and drew 26 fire engines to the seafront — as suspicious; detectives are appealing for witnesses and dashcam footage. The council is arranging alternative accommodation for all those displaced, after the firefighting operation was handed over to police on Sunday.

The Grand Burstin Hotel has previously served as accommodation for asylum seekers, in 2014 and again in 2019, before returning to operation as a commercial hotel.

Guest Ross Honeycomb, 39, said he was woken by 'explosions' and saw smoke pouring out of the underground car park before escaping barefoot into the cold.

Folkestone and Hythe District Council chief executive Susan Priest described it as 'an extremely difficult day' for both hotel guests and local residents forced from their homes.

MoreLBCDozens of Kent residents near fire-hit Folkestone hotel evacuated over safety fearsDaily MailDozens evacuated from homes next to ex-migrant hotel after 'arson'BBC News - UKFolkestone council evacuates nearby residents after Grand Burstin hotel fireLBCInvestigation launched after hundreds evacuated from Folkestone hotel following blazeGB NewsFolkestone hotel fire that sparked mass evacuation being treated as suspiciousThe IndependentDozens of people living next to fire-hit Folkestone hotel moved over safety fearsBBC News - UKMajor seaside hotel fire treated as suspiciousDaily Mail NewsFire breaks out at major hotel that has previously been used to house migrants as guests are evacuatedDaily Mail NewsPolice treating blaze at hotel that has previously been used to house migrants as suspicious - after 280 guests were evacuated in the middle of the nightMetroResidents forced out of homes after Folkestone hotel 'deliberately set on fire'
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