Avon Fire and Rescue Service (AFRS) has announced that an electrical fault was the most likely reason for a fire which destroyed the Grand Pier in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset.

The service's official report into July's blaze ruled out the possibility of arson, but revealed that the cause was to be officially recorded as unknown due to a lack of conclusive evidence.

Deputy chief fire officer at AFRS, Jerry O'Brien, said: "Due to the extent of fire damage and difficulties in the recovery of physical evidence, much of which was washed away by the sea, the Fire Investigation Team had to rely heavily on witness testimonials, photographic and CCTV images."

O'Brien also indicated that an alarm connected to a monitoring service had been triggered as early as 1:35am on the morning of the fire, but a 999 call was not received by AFRS until 6:45am.

"If the service had received a call at the time of the first alarm transmission, it is likely that we would have been faced with a less developed fire," he said.

Plans to rebuild the 104-year old, Grade-II listed structure took a step forward during October when pier owners Kerry and Michelle Michael selected redevelopment designs by Bristol-based architect, Angus Meek.