Around 140 cars destroyed in fire at a Gatwick holiday parking site near Crawley

Holidaymakers who left their cars at a parking site near Gatwick Airport are coming home to find them destroyed, after a large fire tore through Caldyne Business Park in Rowfant on Saturday night.

Around 140 vehicles were destroyed or badly damaged in the blaze, which broke out at the business park on Wallage Lane, near Crawley, just after 9pm on Saturday 22 August. Part of the site is used as long-stay parking by travellers flying from Gatwick. Sussex Police’s own statement referred only to “a number of cars” being damaged; the figure of around 140 comes from subsequent reporting.

What happened

Eight fire engines and two water carriers were sent to the business park, and West Sussex Fire & Rescue Service crews worked through the night. Electric vehicles, heavy goods vehicles and gas cylinders were caught up in the fire, and photographs from the scene show flames rising above the electricity pylons that cross the site.

Sussex Police said officers had responded alongside fire service colleagues to “a large fire” at Caldyne Business Park. “Power has been shut off to the immediate area, affecting a number of businesses and homes, and nearby roads remain closed as a precaution,” the force said on Sunday. “A number of cars have also been damaged at a site used for holiday parking. Any affected consumers are advised to contact their operator directly.”

No casualties have been reported.

More than 2,000 homes lost power

The fire damaged high-voltage equipment, and UK Power Networks had to isolate an overhead cable while firefighters worked. More than 2,000 homes and businesses were left without electricity overnight. Supply was restored by around 9am on Sunday.

A man arrested on suspicion of arson

Sussex Police said a man had been arrested on suspicion of arson and taken into custody. He is reported to be 67 and to have since been released on bail while enquiries continue. A joint investigation with the fire service is under way.

Anyone with information is asked to report it online or call 101, quoting serial 1504 of 22/08.

‘Everything they worked so hard to build’

The parking is only part of the story. Several businesses operate from Caldyne Business Park, and at least one family firm — a vehicle breakdown and recovery business — is understood to have lost its yard, its vehicles and its equipment in a single night.

Megan Maynard, whose brother runs the business with his best friend, posted a family appeal on Facebook after the fire, saying it had caused millions of pounds of damage and had destroyed the livelihoods of a number of people. A GoFundMe appeal has been set up for the family.

If you parked there

Both West Sussex Fire & Rescue Service and Sussex Police have advised anyone whose vehicle may have been damaged to contact their parking operator directly, rather than the emergency services. Keep your booking confirmation and any correspondence: your first claim is normally against the operator, and your own motor insurer should be told as well.

This is a developing story and we will update it as more is confirmed.