Vehicle pursued through Hastings crashes into fire engine responding to house fire

Police arrested three people in connection with a burglary thanks to firefighters who were responding to a house fire in Hastings.
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Police

At about 11.30pm on Monday (October 14), police received a report of a break-in at Parker Building Supplies in Rock Lane, Hastings.

A description of all three suspects and the van they used was provided, and this was spotted by officers en route to the scene.

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The vehicle was pursued for a short time before it crashed into another vehicle. A police spokesman has confirmed this vehicle was a fire engine.

East Sussex Fire said it had sent three appliances to a fire at a property in Hughenden Road, Hastings.

It was there, the collision between the fire engine and the pursued vehicle occurred.

Police said East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service employees, who were at the scene of the collision for an unrelated matter, assisted police in detaining two of the three suspects, all of whom made off on foot.

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An area search was carried out for the third suspect – including police, firefighters and a Sussex Police drone – and he was located hiding in a garden.

A police spokesman said: “A 39-year-old man of no fixed address, arrested on suspicion of burglary and possession of a Class A drug; a 40-year-old man from Hastings arrested on suspicion of burglary and failing to stop when required by police; and a 21-year-old man of no fixed address arrested on suspicion of burglary, remain in police custody at this stage.”

At the house fire, firefighters entered the building, wearing breathing apparatus, and tackled the incident with carbon dioxide.

One resident was treated by firefighters, after breathing in smoke, and left in the care of paramedics.