Fire crews battle a ferocious pub blaze believed to have been triggered by a lightning strike.
The historic Green Man went up in flames during storms around 3.40am on Thursday.
The pub which has stood since 1884 has been destroyed in a fire leaving the owner devastated.
Alex Brook, owner of the Green Man near Wrotham, Kent says he's "lost everything" following the blaze which happened as storms hit the South East and Kent in the early hours of Thursday morning.
The 34-year-old said his business has struggled over the last year due to the pandemic and problems finding staff because of Brexit but they were 'back up and running'.
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"I got the phone call about 3.40am from a neighbour and managed to get down here around 4am to find it all ablaze," he said.
"I've lost everything – a laptop with all my business details and some family portraits going back 100 or so years.
"We've all busted a gut to get back up and running with everything that's happened this year and now this."
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The dad-of-two took over the pub in 2017 with his partner Steph and says they spent £25,000 to get it Covid compliant.
The entire listed building has been totally gutted by the fire with the roof destroyed.
Locals have speculated the pub was hit by lightning, but this has not been confirmed at this stage.
An investigation is underway to determine the cause of the fire.
