MORE than 150 tons of wood shavings and sawdust went up in flames on Wednesday morning, in a spectacular fire which sent a pall of smoke over the village of Ropley.

Firefighters from across the county were called to Snowflakes on the Petersfield Road just before 8 am to deal with the blaze, which completely destroyed a barn used for the storage and separation of shavings from sawdust.

According to Hampshire Fire and Rescue spokesman Mike Gates, the fire is thought to have started in the trailer unit of a very large articulated lorry. Staff arriving for work noticed the blaze which, by that time had spread to the barn, and alerted the fire service.

Crews from Alton and Alresford were first on the scene and immediately called for back-up, with other appliances coming from as far afield as Beaulieu in the New Forest, Bordon and Basingstoke.

Fire fighting was hampered by the combustible nature of compacted materials within the barn, which also included a fork lift truck, machinery for separating shavings from sawdust, fuel tanks and a generator.

Two trucks were also damaged in the blaze, as well as a camper van.

Although well under control by midday, fire crews were expected to remain on site, possibly until yesterday (Thursday), because the remains of the shavings and sawdust had to be spread out and raked through in an attempt to counteract any re-ignition.

Speaking from the scene of the incident, Mr Gates told The Herald that while an initial inspection had indicated an electrical fault within the lorry, an investigation was being carried out into the cause of the fire.