READER'S PICTURES: Van inferno

These dramatic pictures were taken by Express reader Barry Johnson.

Paul Tucknott was driving his Peacehaven Electrical Services van and pulled up outside a house in Lewes Road, Newhaven, at around 8.15am when he noticed there was something wrong.

He said: 'We were just driving along the road because we were going to work down that road anyway.

'We were just coming up the hill when the van cut out on me.

'I could not smell smoke or anything at the time.

'Basically the power steering went and the brakes went so I thought I'll stop here.

'Then the van decided to start up again, by this time there was a little bit of smoke so I though I'll get it down the bottom of the road away from the other cars and houses, but that never happened because I lost the brakes and power steering and just had to pull up.'

Mr Tucknott said he and his apprentice managed to get most of the tools out the van before the fire took hold.

A fire crew from Newhaven attended the blaze and got it under control quickly.

The road was blocked for a short time while they tackled the fire.

The cause of the inferno is believed to be an electrical fault.

No one was injured.