Crews have issued safety advice after a fire was caused by sunlight reflecting off a magnifying glass.

Firefighters from Newport were called to Brick Kiln Lane, Rickling Green this afternoon. 

The occupants had returned home and heard their smoke alarm sounding and called 999 immediately. 

When crews entered the property, they found the curtains on fire in the bedroom which had been caused by sunlight reflecting off a magnifying glass on the bedside table. 

Crews have urged residents to make sure they have a working smoke alarm on every level of their home after a fire in Langdon Hills.

We were called to a semi-detached house Acorn Place today (Sunday 5 January) at 6.14am and two crews from Basildon attended.

Watch Manager Rob Fossett said: "The occupant was woken by a loud bang and discovered a well-developed fire on the first floor. She grabbed her two cats, got out and called 999.

A fire investigation found that the cause of the fire was an extractor fan. 

Crews were called to a fire in a roof space of a pub in Harlow. 

Firefighters were called to the building at 9.30pm tonight (26 December). On arrival firefighters reported the fire was impacting the first floor and around 30% of the roof was alight and, due to the size of the building, requested support of more crews and Chelmsford's aerial ladder platform.

At 10.15pm the incident commander reported that firefighters were tackling the fire in sections. 

Crews were called to an end terrace house in Harwich earlier this morning after a neighbour spotted smoke coming from the property. 

On arrival firefighters reported there was a fire in a bedroom and the house was filling up with smoke. 

Firefighters quickly tackled the fire and then cleared the property of smoke. 

Officers believe a phone charger started the fire. 

Station Manager Karl Amos said:

Update Monday 23 December 

The cause of the fire was recorded as undetermined. 

Crews have extinguished a fire involving multiple caravans.

Harlow's crew was called to the incident in Roydon yesterday evening (20 December) after reports of a shed on fire. On arrival the crew was faced with a much larger incident than expected, with two caravans and several fence panels alight. The fire quickly spread to additional caravans.

Due to the size of the fire, additional support was requested from Essex and Hertfordshire crews. 

A caravan was badly damaged by smoke after a fire started due to a candle being left unattended. The incident is a strong reminder of how important fire safety is, especially in small spaces like caravans.

The fire started in the kitchen/lounge area when the unattended candle fell and set the sofa on fire. Thankfully, the smoke alarms in the caravan were working and gave an early warning, allowing the occupier to get out safely.

Firefighters are reminding residents to check and clean their chimneys regularly after a fire caused significant damage to a timber-framed home in Thaxted this evening (Wednesday 11 December).

Crews from Thaxted, Saffron Walden, Newport and Braintree, along with an Aerial Ladder Platform from Chelmsford, were called to the property at 5:20pm after the homeowners noticed part of the interior wall had collapsed, revealing a fire inside the chimney.