Fire crews from across Medway tackled a fire on a barge in Chatham Docks last night.

The boat, known as a dumb-barge, was moored to the sea wall with a cargo of wood and tyres when it was accidently set alight at about 11pm.

A spokesman for Kent Fire and Rescue Service said: “We were called to Chatham Docks, in Gillingham after a fire broke out on a barge.

“Some repair work had been carried out on it and heat from a welder may have started the fire.

“There was not that much damage to the barge as they are made of thick metal, but the wood and tyres took about an hour and a half to put out.

“We had four pumps at the site one from Chatham, two from Medway and one from Rainham.”