Six hundred tons of hay were destroyed in a barn fire in Chew Stoke at the weekend.

A huge pall of smoke from the fire, at a farm in Breach Hill Lane, could be seen for miles.

The fire is thought to have started accidentally at 3pm on Saturday in an open-sided barn.

Fire crews from Chew Magna, Blagdon and Bedminster fought the blaze and were joined by more teams throughout the weekend to keep the smouldering remains from bursting into flames again.

Avon Fire and Rescue service spokesman James Bladon said: "When the crews arrived, the contents of the barn were well alight.

"Their main concern was to prevent the fire from spreading to adjacent farm buildings, so further appliances were requested."

Firefighters kept a watch throughout the night and yesterday.

Ian Bell, 54, who lives on the other side of the valley to the farm, said: "It was a pretty big barn fire.

"There was a huge cloud of smoke that could be seen for miles."