Yapton inferno

IT WAS a miracle no-one was hurt in one of the biggest and most dangerous fires in the area for at least five years, when metal fabricators R S Fuller burst into flames on Thursday morning.

A massive fireball could be seen for miles and surrounding houses and buildings shook violently as a series of loud explosions erupted at the workshop in Ford Lane, Yapton.

The fire started at about 9.30am when a spark from a grinder ignited a pot of paint thinners. It took just seconds for the fire to spread to the rest of the building as the six employees ran for their lives.

One eye witness working at the nearby Ford Industrial estate said he heard two or three deafening explosions.

"I didn't know what was happening. I looked out and saw this fireball and a load of acetylene bottles flying up into the air. They must have been flung about 40 or 50ft up."

Another eye witness working at the nearby Tarmac depot said: "The smoke was so thick that there was a blackout for a few seconds after the first explosion."

R S Fuller proprietor Bob Fuller said: "I was on my way back to the office from Bognor and I saw this plume of smoke and thought, 'blimey, someone's having a fire'.