ARSONISTS torched a derelict village pub.

Police were called to the Harrow Inn, in Fen Lane, Bulphan, just before 3am on Saturday after a witness reported suspicious people next to the pub.

On arriving, the officers found a blaze had been started and called the fire service.

Fire crews, from Orsett, Grays and Brentwood, attended the scene and searched the building but found no-one inside.

Firefighters putting out the fire were hampered by low water pressure in the area and the fire had engulfed the whole building, which meant the blaze took more than three hours to put out and damp down.

Police are investigating.