Eastbourne pier -Another fire disaster:

Damaged section of Eastbourne pier

Back in October 2010 I posted here about the tragic fire that destroyed much of the historic Victorian pier here in Hastings.
History has recently repeated itself with fire destroying a portion of the pier at Eastbourne -some 17 miles along the East Sussex coastline.

Pier entrance -showing damage beyond

Breaking out around 3.00pm on Wednesday July 30, the fire was initially reported as being a small in nature but soon developed into a major incident with fire crews from around East Sussex attending aided by the RNLI lifeboats from Eastbourne. The band of smoke stretched along the coast to Hastings and beyond.

Thankfully, nobody was hurt in the incident and after some hours the fire was brought under control -leaving the rest of the pier intact. I took these images the next day which clearly show the extent of the damage.

Damaged section -with the saved section beyond

Opened in 1870, Eastbourne pier was one of fourteen seaside piers designed by Victorian architect Eugenius Birch -including Hastings Pier and the West Pier in Brighton (also a victim of fire some years ago).


The good news is that Eastbourne hope to have their pier rebuilt and re-opened sometime in 2015 whilst in Hastings work has been underway since last year with a planned re-opening in Spring/Summer 2015.
There is something especially British about these old seaside piers which generates much love and affection for them. Indeed, like Hastings before it, the fire at Eastbourne received National newspaper and television coverage here in the UK.
These images are currently available from all my main (editorial) photo agents. Regards, David.