A five-tonne tug boat in the Mill River in Stratford was badly damaged after a fire ripped through its crew cabin in the early hours of this morning.

Three engines from East Ham tackled the blaze, close to where the Olympic Stadium is being built, in Pudding Mill Lane at about 1am.

They were joined by two fire rescue units who use specialist equipment, including extended hose reels.

The 25 firefighters had the blaze under control just after 3am.

The cause of the fire is currently under investigation. No injuries were reported.

Crew manager of the East Ham fire rescue unit, Martin Selwood, said: “Fortunately the owner of the boat had two boats and was on the other one.

“We had four engines there, and because it was water we had to use specialist equipment.”