A telecommunications tower caught fire close to a major road.
Dramatic footage and images from the scene showed the mast well ablaze in Margate Road in the Broomfield area of Herne Bay yesterday evening (July 1).
Smoke could be seen billowing from the tower just off the slip road for the A299 Thanet Way, with an ambulance also pictured near the scene.
The telecoms mast belongs to Virgin Media O2 and is impacting mobile services in the area.
An eyewitness who lives nearby but didn’t want to be named, told KentOnline: “I saw some smoke coming out; I didn’t know what it was.
“The fire engines were coming past and some people were coming along telling me that a mast is on fire.
“It was literally the fire engines that really sort of made us aware that there was something happening and people told us that there was a fire down the road. It was a bit bizarre.”
A Kent Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson said: “Four fire engines attended and crews used foam and main jets to extinguish the fire.
“There were no reported injuries, and the cause is not yet known.”
An O2 spokesperson said: “Following a fire last night (July 1), one of our masts in the Herne Bay area is currently out of service.
“Engineers are assessing the damage and will carry out repair works as soon as it’s safe to do so.
“Other sites in the area have been optimised to help minimise the impact to services and we apologise for any temporary disruption this may cause.”
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