There was shock as a car burst into flames in a supermarket car park over the weekend.

Chris Simmons was visiting the Tesco superstore in Hove on Saturday morning with his daughter Anna when he noticed a small amount of smoke coming from the car.

He decided to call the fire brigade to be safe - and just as well. While he was on the phone, large flames began to leap from the bonnet of the car.

East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service teams arrived at the scene within minutes and were quickly able to extinguish the blaze.

Firefighters worked quickly to extinguish a car fire in the car park of the Tesco superstore in Hove Credit: Chris Simmons eight-year-old daughter Anna

Firefighters worked quickly to extinguish a car fire in the car park of the Tesco superstore in Hove Credit: Chris Simmons' eight-year-old daughter Anna

Chris, who lives in nearby Poets' Corner, said: "We were walking to Tesco in the morning when we saw this car with a little bit of smoke coming from it, very gently.

"As we walked by it started to get worse and so I thought I should phone the fire brigade.

"As I was on the phone, I told them the car wasn't actually on fire. Then, all of a sudden, it was. It just lit up."

Firefighters worked quickly to extinguish a car fire in the car park of the Tesco superstore in Hove Credit: Chris Simmons' eight-year-old daughter Anna

The 55-year-old said that Tesco staff were "brilliant" and quickly blocked off the area surrounding the car, with fire crews arriving just minutes later.

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Chris's eight-year-old daughter Anna asked if she could watch the firefighters work and filmed the crew arriving at the scene.

And the pair were impressed by the efficient manner in which the team tackled the blaze.

 

Firefighters worked quickly to extinguish a car fire in the car park of the Tesco superstore in Hove Credit: Chris Simmons' eight-year-old daughter Anna

Chris said: "I have never seen a fire put out in person before, it just really makes you appreciate the fire service.

"I have a friend who was rescued from a fire and she said, when you have been in one, you appreciate all the protocols in place to prevent them.

"After I called them, it felt like the fire brigade were there in seconds, and they were all very professional.

"Firefighters had the fire out very quickly, it was just like 'one, two, three, four', you could see they knew exactly what they were doing.

"When you see something like that, you thank god you can just call a number and they are there.

"So, this is a huge shout out to them."

Firefighters worked quickly to extinguish a car fire in the car park of the Tesco superstore in Hove Credit: Chris Simmons eight-year-old daughter Anna

Firefighters worked quickly to extinguish a car fire in the car park of the Tesco superstore in Hove Credit: Chris Simmons' eight-year-old daughter Anna

An East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service spokeswoman said: "We were called at 9.10am on Saturday to attend a car fire in Tesco’s car park in Church Road, Hove.

"Firefighters from Hove attended and used two Breathing Apparatus and one Hose Reel Jet to extinguish the fire.

"The fire is believed to have been caused by faulty electrics."