BLACK smoke billowed across a busy main road in Kidder-minster when flames tore through a group of farm buildings.

Firefighters from Kidderminster, Bewdley and Stourport were called out to tackle the blaze at Hodgehill Farm, off the A456 Birmingham Road, at around 4pm last Friday.

The incident left long tailbacks of traffic as firefighters used a fire hydrant on the opposite side of the road to deal with the flames.

It is believed the fire started in a disused pig sty. It spread rapidly, however, and a range of farm buildings was said to have been "well alight" when the fire crews arrived.

Three main pump jets were used to extinguish the flames and the crews continued to dampen down the buildings until around 5pm. A further inspection of the site was carried out later that evening.

Brian Hall, a BT engineer, was travelling towards the M5 when he was caught up in the traffic tailbacks. He said black smoke could be seen for miles and telephone cables were burned out in the area, causing phone lines, for some residents, to be cut off.

Alec Mackie, spokesman for Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service, said it was still investigating the cause of the fire but no-one was injured in the incident.

He added: "It was a disused pig sty that caught fire. We have carried out an investigation into the possible causes but we're unable to say what it was."

A BT spokesman confirmed an overhead line had been damaged but only a small number of customers had been affected.

He added: "The fire on the farm did damage an overhead cable but we are working to ensure it is replaced as quickly as possible."