FIREFIGHTERS were called to a café in Essex after a lorry became tangled in overhead power lines pulling a chimney down on a lean to where customers were eating.

FIREFIGHTERS were called to a café in Essex after a lorry became tangled in overhead power lines pulling a chimney down on a lean to where customers were eating.

The incident happened at The Blinking Owl Café in Rayleigh, Essex at shortly after 3pm.

The café suffered severe structural damage as a result of the incident and initially it was feared that a man was trapped in the wreckage of the café, but when crews arrived they discovered this not to be the case.

One man was injured and was treated by paramedics at the scene and left in the care of the ambulance service.

Crews made the area safe and stood by awaiting the arrival of gas and electrical engineers and structural engineers.

A fire service spokesman said: "The HGV was carrying a container and a small crane, which helps it load and unload, had been left up.

“As it was driving out of the café's car park the crane was caught on overhead power cables which in turn pulled a chimney crest down from the roof of the café.

"This chimney crest then went through the roof of a lean which is used as part of the seating area for customers. It completely destroyed the lean-to which also took part of the main building with it.

"A man was in there at the time of the collapse and he appears to have suffered serious injury as a result of the chimney crest falling.”