One of Britain's most popular seaside piers, Eastbourne, was today ravaged by a major fire.
Around 60 fire and rescue crews were at work in the town in the East Sussex county of England as flames engulfed a building on the famous landmark.
It is believed that the blaze broke out behind some wood panelling in the arcade building.
Sian Ellis, a hotel manager in the town, told BBC that the pier was an "absolute red, molten, mess of flame and smoke".
"We've just had another explosion there and it's very, very frightening and hugely saddening for the whole of the town," she added.
The pier has been evacuated and there are no reports of any injuries.
Councillor Philip Ede, from Eastbourne Borough Council, who witnessed the fire, said, "It looks pretty drastic from where I'm standing. There's a lot of smoke and flames engulfing the first section of the pier. We pray the fire brigade can save as much of the building as possible."
The pier was built in the 1870s and, according to the Piers Society, previously had a theatre and a "camera obscura" built on it.
A number of cafes, bars and a nightclub are now situated along the pier.
The pier featured in a number of films and television programmes including British Sikh director Gurinder Chadha's 'Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging'.
