A battery charger is believed to have been the cause of a fire which destroyed a lawn mower and bicycle repair business.

Flames ripped through Court Mower Services in Lewes on Friday morning, gutting the building and wrecking the dozens of lawn mowers and bikes that were inside.

A gas cannister in the building exploded under the intense heat of the blaze and flames were seen leaping up to 30-feet from the building.

About 40 firefighters used foam to smother the flames but the business, which had been taken over just 18 months before, was left in tatters.

Owner Kevin Porter said he had worked “24 hours a day” to get it up to speed and that he was “gutted” to have all his hard work go to waste.

A report by fire investigation officers found that a battery charger in the building had been left on overnight and may have been to blame for the blaze.