Harvester restaurant near Colchester is severely damaged after a midnight fire rips through the building
Essex County Fire and Rescue Service crews tackle the blaze at the Harvester restaurant in Stanway, with incident commander Jeremy Tuckwell saying firefighters worked to stop the fire spreading to nearby buildings.
Firefighters tackled a fast-moving blaze at a Harvester restaurant on London Road in Stanway, near Colchester, after Essex County Fire and Rescue Service received a call at 12.50am on Thursday. Crews operated from ground level and from height, calling for reinforcements on arrival, and eventually brought the fire under control, though the building suffered extensive damage. According to incident commander Jeremy Tuckwell, the cause will be investigated once conditions allow crews to enter safely.
London Road in Stanway, close to its roundabout with Essex Yeomanry Way, remained shut throughout the morning.
Tuckwell said crews 'worked hard to tackle the fire in sections and prevent it from spreading to nearby buildings.'
The nearby Sainsbury's on Western Approach was unaffected and trading as usual, the fire service confirmed.
