A CLEAN up operation is under way after a fridge fire caused a large amount of smoke damage to a cafe.

The fire brigade rushed to High Road, Benfleet just after midnight yesterday to reports of a blaze in Tasty Bites Cafe.

The fire started from a faulty fridge, and the flats above the cafe were briefly evacuated.

The cafe was closed yesterday, and will likely to remain closed today, but the owners are confident of reopening tomorrow.

There was nobody in the cafe at the time and nobody was injured in the fire.

Manager Toni Barrett, said: “There is a lot of smoke damage, that is the main issue at the moment. A nearby neighbour was going to the garage opposite and spotted the fire, he phoned the fire brigade.

“And then they evacuated the flats upstairs, but there is no damage to the flats.

“The fire brigade were fantastic, I believe they were here very quickly and had the situation under control.

“We are just trying to get re - pairs done at the moment. Of course it could have been a lot worse, thankfully no one was hurt.”

An Essex Fire spokesman said: “Firefighters were called to the scene of a restaurant fire after a passerby noticed smoke emanating from the premises.

“On arrival crews reported that the kitchen was well alight. As a safety precaution, the High Road was closed.

“Firefighters extinguished the fire completely by 12.43am, before using thermal imaging cameras to be certain there were no remaining hotspots within the building that could possibly reignite.

“Much of the kitchen area has been badly damaged, while the rest of the restaurant has been affected by smoke.”