Two men were treated by paramedics for the effects of breathing in smoke when a chip shop caught fire.

Crews were called to the Singleton Fish Bar in Ashford just before 3.30pm.

They discovered smoke coming from the premises with the ground floor of the two-storey property well alight.

Firefighters donned breathing apparatus and set about tackling the blaze with a main jet and two high-pressure hose reel jets.

The ground floor has been severely damaged by the blaze which was dealt with by 5pm.

The men were treated as a precaution and have not been seriously hurt in the incident.

The fire is being treated as accidental and is believed to have been caused by an electrical fault.

Workers from the Singleton Tandoori, which is next door, arrived at 5.20pm to open up their business for the evening and were shocked at the scene.

Owner Ian Sleeper told KentOnline this evening: "As I walked towards my premises I could already smell burning and then when I got there I could see the fish bar seemed to be completely gutted.

"The fire engines and police cars were still at the scene but were at the rear of the premises.

"My own business was left untouched by the fire but it was a very big shock.

"My first thought was whether anybody was hurt and I pray that nobody was but I just don't know yet. My second thought is whether the staff there have to lose their jobs because of this."

Staff member Desim Zhadeli also arrived in time to open up the restaurant and take away.

He said: "When I arrived I saw the police car and two to three fire engines.

"It was scary and we are only 20ft away from the fish bar but the fire did not spread to our premises.

"By the time I arrived there were no more flames but there was a bit of smoke."

The Singleton Barn pub is about 100 metres from the fish bar.

Speaking earlier, a member of staff, who did not want to be named, said: "You can see a large pillar of smoke from just outside our pub but we are not near enough to see any fire engines.

"Customers have of course been commenting on what is happening but we are at a safe distance from the fire here."

On Monday, the shop shutters were down on the fish bar with a taped cordon in place.

A sign on the building said: “We are closed due to the fire. We are hoping to open soon. Sorry for any inconvenience caused.”