Firefighters had to climb high barbed wire fencing to stop a blaze tearing through a business premises.

They had to get inside the locked yard to stop flames as they struck the roof of the building last night .

The blaze broke out in two vans at the yard of Ashford Self Hire and spread to the nearby building's roof.

Ashford station firefighters Gary McPhee said: "To deal with the fire quickly crew members had to first climb fencing with hosepipes.

"The fencing was up to 8ft high with barbed wire but firefighters managed to do it without getting themselves hurt.

"Then we had to use boltcroppers to break open the gates and get our appliances in."

The blaze broke out at the business at the Cobbs Wood industrial estate, Brunswick Road, just before midnight.

The flames totally destroyed the vans and reached the inside of the single storey building roof. But firefighters stopped it spreading further.

A total 10 per cent of the roof was damaged.

Three engines were called to the incident and firefighters were at the scene for two-and-a-half hours.