A NURSING home was evacuated when solar panels on its roof caught fire this morning.

Firefighters were called to St Joseph’s Nursing Home at the Franciscan Convent in Littlehampton at 9.30am.

Photos show black smoke rising from the nursing home as nurses and nuns look on.

Fire crews from four different stations brought the blaze under control while police officers evacuated residents to a nearby school.

The Argus: Firefighters tackled the blaze at St Joseph's Nursing Home in LittlehamptonFirefighters tackled the blaze at St Joseph's Nursing Home in Littlehampton

A West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service spokesman said all residents have been accounted for.

But it urged people to avoid the area for the time being and for nearby residents to keep doors and windows closed.

“We were called at 9.30am to reports of a fire in a residential building on East Street in Littlehampton,” a spokesman said.

“Crews from Littlehampton, East Preston, Arundel and Worthing have been mobilised to the scene along with the Incident Command Unit from Bognor Regis and the Aerial Ladder Platform from Worthing.”

"Officers attended to assist the fire brigade with road closures and evacuating residents into a local school," a Sussex Police spokeswoman said.

A South East Coast Ambulance Service spokesman said paramedics were assessing those evacuated in the blaze.