A COMMERCIAL unit has been destroyed following a fire in the middle of the night.

Two fire crews from Chelmsford and one from Great Baddow arrived in Timsons Lane, Chelmsford to find burning within a large store room, which is used to store sports equipment.

The ground floor of the adjacent two-storey property was also completely smoke logged.

Firefighters used a positive pressure ventilation fan to clear the accumulated smoke and worked hard to extinguish the fire by 11.09pm.

Crews remained at the scene for around thirty minutes afterwards to dampen down remaining hotspots and ensure there was no risk of reignition.

The store room has been destroyed, while the adjoining building has also suffered smoke damage.

A fire investigation will now take place to find out the cause of the fire.