A fire chief has told villagers that they will still have fire cover after their community's fire station collapsed onto its retained appliance.

Manea Fire Station, on Westfield Road, has been closed off after brickwork around its engine bay collapsed last night without warning.

An investigation is now under way to establish how why the structure gave way. Nobody was injured as a result of the incident.

Firefighters are now waiting for the building to be checked over before they can assess damage to the engine.

Residents in the Fenland village have been advised that they will still be able to get a fire engine when they need it.

Cambridgeshire's chief fire officer Chris Strickland said: 'I want to reassure the residents of Manea that they can still expect a fire engine to be with them in the fastest possible time in an emergency.

'The crew will be working with investigating officers and structural engineers during the coming days to ensure the station is safe and to find out what caused the building to collapse.'