Striking firefighters across Sussex have been breaking their picket lines to help where lives are threatened.

Fire crews from Worthing and Shoreham went to Albion Street in Southwick after reports of a motorist being trapped when a car was in collision with a lorry at midnight yesterday.

A spokesman said: "The car had collided with the lorry as it came out of a side turning.

"No one was trapped when we arrived so we made everything safe and returned to the station.

"If an incident is serious, we will leave the picket line."

In Horsham firefighters went to a crash on the A24 near Kingsfold at about 7pm last night.

A Green Goddess and a support team also attended but no one was trapped.

At 6.21am, Crawley firefighters went to a crash on the A272 west of the A23.

A Green Goddess and a support team were on their way but the firemen got there first.

At 6.25am, firefighters at Hurstpierpoint answered an emergency call near Bolney where a driver was trapped in a car.

The car had rolled over and firefighters had to cut the person free. The casualty was taken to hospital.

In Worthing, striking firefighters joined forces with Royal Navy crewmen to fight an office fire.

Crews at Worthing learnt of the blaze at Clifton Road, Worthing, on a pager and took two fire engines to the scene.

They arrived to find two Green Goddess vehicles, manned by the Royal Navy, preparing hoses to tackle the flames which had engulfed the offices of accountancy firm Lucie-Smith and Co.

The brigade immediately took control of the situation, at about 11.30pm, sending two teams in to search the building for people.

Worthing firefighter Gavin Ross said: "We sent four men with breathing apparatus straight through the fire.

"There was so much heat a hose reel was burnt through as they went upstairs. Flames were licking out the front of the shop.

"The Green Goddess guys started dousing the flames and we put another search crew in through a upstairs window."

No one was found in the property and, after the fire was made safe, the striking crews returned to their picket line at Worthing fire station.

Witness Richard Carty said: "Flames were pouring out. The place was gutted."

In East Sussex, an elderly woman died at the wheel of her car after suffering a heart attack and crashing into two vehicles.

The pensioner was driving a Rover Metro east on the B2089 Cripp's Corner, near Battle, when the smash happened.

Her car was in collision with a red Vauxhall Corsa and a goods vehicle travelling west on the same road just after 4.30pm yesterday.

The woman, who has not been identified, died at the scene, along with her pet dog being carried in a rear seat.

Drivers of the other two vehicles sustained cuts, bruises and shock but their injuries were not serious.

One Green Goddess, manned by the Royal Navy, was sent, along with a military cutting crew and retained firefighters from Broad Oak.