FIREFIGHTERS battled a car fire in Southbourne this afternoon.

One crew was called to tackle the blaze on Southern Road at around 1.15pm.

A spokesperson for Dorset Fire and Rescue Service said there were "a lot of calls" alerting the service to the fire. 

"On arrival, the crew found a black Mercedes sports car well alight in the engine compartment.

"The owner wasn't there, so the crew liaised with police so they could identify and contact them.

"Firefighters used two breathing apparatus and two hose reel jets to extinguish the fire."

The fire was out by 1.30pm. Southern Road was partially blocked while the incident was ongoing, but the fire crew is now leaving the scene.