FIRE crews from across the county spent Christmas Eve tackling a large and “difficult” blaze in south Essex.

Firefighters from Essex County Fire and Rescue Service were called to reports of a large plume of smoke in Stambridge, near Rochford, at about midday.

Upon arrival, crews reported several buildings were alight.

Echo: Huge smoke coming from the scene of the fire in StambridgeHuge smoke coming from the scene of the fire in Stambridge (Image: Essex County Fire and Rescue)

The fire service said the incident involved “a number of industrial units” which measured 100m by 50m.

At its peak, eight crews and about 80 firefighters were at the scene tackling the flames as well as protecting the units nearby.

Fire crews from Southend, Leigh, Chelmsford, Rayleigh Weir, Grays, Basildon, Corringham and Rochford were called.

Echo: Thick smoke could be seen for milesThick smoke could be seen for miles (Image: ECFRS)

Crews urged nearby residents to close their windows and doors due to the amount of smoke the fire was producing.

Some reported seeing the billowing smoke for miles from the incident, across south Essex and even in the Maldon area.

The area was cordoned off by the police as the fire was extinguished.

Echo: Emergency services at the sceneEmergency services at the scene (Image: Aaron Chesham)

Firefighters used aerial ladder platforms to pour water on the fire from above as well as drones to get a live overview of the fire from the sky. 

By about 3.30pm, the fire service said “good progress had been made” with firefighters managing to get the fire “well under control”.

The incident was then scaled down to leave around 20 firefighters at the scene to finish extinguishing hot spots.

At 4.30pm, area manager Neil Fenwick issued a statement saying the fire was “almost out”.

Echo: Firefighters at the scene in StambridgeFirefighters at the scene in Stambridge (Image: Essex Fire)

He continued: “When we arrived at the scene, we found a well-developed fire.

“The wind has been the major factor in how quickly the fire spread, but firefighters worked hard to stop the fire spreading to any other units at the site.

"At its height we had about 80 firefighters here helping to extinguish the fire.

“The building on fire contained a large quantity of furniture, it also had cylinders and chemicals.

“This was a difficult fire so we bought in some special equipment to deal with the fire as safely as we could."

The cause of the fire is unknown at this time.