Investigators are trying to find the source of a fire at the De Vere Grand hotel in Brighton, which led to the evacuation of the property over the weekend.

No one was hurt during the blaze, which took place on Saturday night, but all members of staff and around 400 hotel guests had to be evacuated.

The fire started around 8pm on the sixth floor of the seafront property but was quickly put out by local fire fighters.

Sussex Police chief inspector Laurence Taylor praised the hotel staff for their composure. He told the BBC: “The hotel staff have well-practised drills. They carried out a very quick evacuation.”

Jeremy Rata, general manager of the De Vere Grand hotel said: “The fire brigade are undertaking a full investigation and a small section of the hotel will be closed to the public until this is complete.”

Last month, police arrested two men in connection with a hotel fire in Newquay, Cornwall, last summer in which three people died.

The arrests follow a police news conference earlier in the week in which it was announced that the fire at the Penhallow Hotel was being treated as arson and that a murder inquiry had been launched.

Arrests made over Newquay hotel fire >>

Fatal Cornish hotel fire now a murder investigation >>

Police now treating Hotel du Vin fire as arson >>

Fire safety in hotels >>

By Kerstin Kühn

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