The distraught owners of a popular pizza restaurant which was ravaged by fire have thanked the community for pulling together at their time of need.

The blaze broke out at GB Pizza Co in Margate - which had not long been refurbished ahead of its 10th anniversary - in the early hours of yesterday.

A man was arrested and has since been charged with arson being reckless as to whether life was endangered.

Since the fire, the owners say they have been "beautifully swamped with messages of love and support" from loyal customers, who flocked to the shop in Marine Drive to help with the clean-up operation.

Sharing their devastation on Twitter, GB Pizza Co said: "How is it possible to feel so heartbroken, and yet, at the same time, feel like your heart is full?"

The much-loved pizza parlour was co-founded by award-winning chef Rachel Seed, who sadly died in 2018, and food journalist Lisa Richards.

They first came to Margate in 2012, starting off on the harbour arm before moving to their permanent seafront restaurant.

The business has since become a strong part of Margate's community, and regulars were quick to spring into action to help staff upon hearing of the fire.

"Customers - who we now call friends - turned up with rubber gloves and cleaning spray," the post continued.

"Our neighbours offered us shelter, their loo, drinks and food. Cups of tea arrived, and as if by magic; hugs were given out with wonderful abandon."

The blaze is understood to have been started deliberately, but thankfully, no one was injured.

The restaurant said the attack was "so mindless, so stupid, so pointless".

They also thanked the emergency services who were swiftly on the scene.

"The police and fire services have been bloody brilliant and supportive and kind and have even made us laugh on the worst of days," they said.

Unfortunately, a minority of commentators were not quite so helpful.

"We will ignore the idiots who made stupid comments about the fire's cause," GB Pizza Co continued.

"It's very sad that people jump to irrational conclusions before thinking about the human impact of a tragedy. Go check yourselves".

They said the site suffered significant damage in the fire, requiring a "Herculean amount of work", but added: "Here's hoping the insurance company is as helpful and supportive as you lot".

"Thank you, Margate, for showing us your love on such a dark day."

Ending the post, they reassured their customers: "We will be back. With big old bells on".

Police and three fire engines were called just after 4am, and crews spent almost four hours at the scene, tackling the flames with a hose reel jet.

Witness Sam Castle called 999 after seeing the flames on his way home from work.

The 24-year-old said: "I was driving past after work and the building was already on fire so quickly stopped my car to call 999.

"When I arrived at 4.04am there was a homeless guy trying to put it out but the phone operator was telling me to get them away from the building and that they had two fire trucks on the way.

"The phone operator asked questions like ‘are there any flats above it?’, ‘is anyone inside?’ and generally trying to gather information about how it could’ve started.

"I'd say roughly three minutes after I made the call about three police cars showed up and started blocking off the road, knocking on doors close by to see if they were occupied to potentially evacuate anyone that was close.

"Then about two minutes after the police arrived, the first fire truck turned up and within seconds of the vehicle stopping, they already had their temperature cameras out so they could focus on the parts of the fire that were burning the hottest.

"Overall I think the police and fire services did an amazing job with their response times and how they dealt with the incident so a huge well done to them."

A fire service spokesman said: "There were no reported injuries, and the cause is being investigated."

Andrew Miller, 48, of Eaton Road, Margate, was arrested in connection with the fire and later charged with one count of arson being reckless as to whether life was endangered.

He was remanded to appear at Folkestone Magistrates’ Court today.

The fire was one of three of significance in Thanet yesterday.

Hours later, crews were called back out when the derelict Chilton Tavern pub in Ramsgate went up in flames.

There was also a major blaze at a play park behind Ramsgate fire station.