A FURNITURE distribution centre destroyed by a devastating fire will take “at least a year to recover fully”, the owners have revealed.

On Christmas Eve, firefighters were called to Stambridge, in Rochford, after reports of a fire involving a number of industrial units.

Clouds of black smoke billowed across south Essex as the flames ripped through warehouses on the industrial site.

One of the businesses destroyed by the fire was the main distribution centre for Furniture Outlets.

Ianto Bellis, managing director at Furniture Outlets, said it is a huge disaster for the business.

He said: “This is a terrible blow to all the businesses affected.

“I know at the best of times I am fortunate to have an amazing team. However, it is in this terrible situation that I am witnessing how incredible the team I work with are.

“The team have cut their holidays short, put together a disaster recovery plan and are in the process of establishing a basic working model to keep us going for now.

“This is a huge disaster for any business, and we expect it will take approximately one year to recover fully.

“I would like to thank the emergency services for their efforts and everyone for their messages and offers of support. It has been very humbling, and we are truly grateful.”

It is believed some of the other businesses impacted included Autodynamics, Rotec Vehicle Services, and the factory for PSV limited.

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

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.

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

Mr Bellis added: “It was just after midday on Christmas Eve that I learnt that our main distribution centre in Stambridge was ablaze.

“So, I raced to the site with spare keys for the fleet of vehicles that were parked next to the unit.

“Thankfully, a fire crew kept the vehicles dampened, this gave us enough time to move them all to safety.

“Upon arriving at the site, I was shocked to see the size of the fire. Due to the strong winds that day they literally fanned the flames.

“The fire started outside a neighbouring unit, it spread incredibly quickly and sadly destroyed our unit.”