Skip to content

Fire that destroyed 36 buses thought to be arson

News imageEssex County Fire and Rescue Service A double-decker bus engulfed in flames, with smoke billowing from it.Essex County Fire and Rescue Service
Crews were still tackling the fire into Friday evening

About 36 double-decker buses have been destroyed in an arson attack at a depot.

Flames took hold at the Chadwell St Mary depot, near Grays, shortly after 18:00 BST on Friday, Essex County Fire and Rescue Service said.

A huge cloud of thick black smoke was seen billowing from the site, with crews from Grays, Basildon and Orsett bringing the fire under control by 21:00.

Station manager Lee Hurst said: "This was a significant and challenging incident involving a large number of vehicles."

News imageEssex County Fire and Rescue Service A cloud of thick black smoke in an otherwise blue sky. In the foreground are a ploughed field and fire engines.Essex County Fire and Rescue Service
A cloud of thick black smoke has been billowing from the site

He said an investigation found the blaze was started deliberately, and thanked both firefighters and local farmers for their help in tackling it.

Essex Police confirmed it was investigating and "at this stage it is being treated as a suspected arson".

"We are working closely with fire service colleagues to establish the cause of the fire."

News imagePeter Lester-Tugwell A photo of a field, trees and houses, with the sky beyond filled with clouds of black smoke.Peter Lester-Tugwell
The fire set off a massive cloud of black smoke

Roads that were closed in the area reopened at about 21:00 on Friday.

No arrests have been made and the force was "working through a number of lines of inquiry," police said.

Do you have a story suggestion for Essex? Contact us below.

Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.

Related internet links