AS one much-loved and iconic pier burnt to a crisp, plans for the restoration of another monument were starting to manifest.

On Monday the West Pier trust will ask its 450-plus members what they think should happen to the derelict and gutted Brighton structure.

It closed its doors in 1975 and part of it collapsed into the sea after violent storms in 2002. A year later what was left of the landmark met the same fate Eastbourne pier succumbed to this week.

There was hope when the Heritage Lottery Fund promised millions of pounds worth of funding to get the site back on its feet. But they pulled the plug and nothing has been done since.

What was evident at Eastbourne on Wednesday was just how highly Sussex piers, and those outside of the county, are regarded by residents.

Tears streamed down onlookers’ faces as Eastbourne’s venue was engulfed in relentless flames – much like Hastings Pier and the West Pier before it.

To hear the trust and the West Pier’s advocates are now starting to brainstorm plans for the site is exciting and should give Eastbourne extra motivation to get its famous landmark back on its feet.

Not that it will need it.