A fire which sparked an evacation at a town centre supermarkert was deliberate.

Fire crews were called to Sainsbury's at Romney Place just before 6pm yesterday and the store was cleared as a precaution after it became smoke-logged.

Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus tackled a blazing pile of rubbish.

Crews used high-pressure hose reel jets to extinguish the fire, then cleared smoke from the supermarket using a positive pressure ventilation fan.

There is no suggestion the store was the intended target.

No one was injured and crews had left the site by 7pm.