Firefighters battle large fire near Birling Gap and iconic lighthouse: in pictures

A downland fire ignited on historic coastland at the Seven Sisters cliffs in Sussex at around 6pm on Tuesday evening, according to the fire service. At its peak, 100 square metres of gorse was alight. Firefighters spent two hours putting out the flames using two land rovers, two fire engines and firefighters armed with bush beaters, leaving the scene before 8pm. The fire service currently does not know the cause of the fire. David Baker from East Dean was taking photos of the local flora moments before he noticed the emergency response. The rector of East Dean Church, and former political journalist at the Leicester Mercury, followed his instincts and came across the blaze, taking photos of the firefighters hard at work. When the 53-year-old first saw the flames, he thought: "Gosh, I hope this doesn't really start to spread, because it is dry. It would be awful if it engulfed the lighthouse or the National Trust building and tea rooms." The Belle Tout lighthouse was moved back from the cliff edge to stop it falling into the sea in 1999.