On Air Now

This is the Coast

Midnight - 8:00am

  • 01723 336444

Now Playing

Fire at Folkestone's Grand Burstin Hotel being treated as suspicious, police say

A fire that forced nearly 300 people to be evacuated from a Folkestone hotel is being treated as suspicious, say police.

Emergency services were called to the Grand Burstin Hotel, in Marine Parade, just after 1am on Saturday.

Kent fire service had 26 engines on the scene at the peak of the incident and believe the blaze started in the basement.

No injuries have been reported.

"Enquiries into the circumstances are underway and officers now believe the fire may have been caused deliberately," said Kent Police.

Officers are seeking witnesses and dashcam footage from the area, particularly from 10pm on Friday to 12.30am on Saturday.

The 550-room hotel is operated by Britannia Hotels and overlooks the town's harbour.

Read more from Sky News:
Police release new CCTV image of missing girl
Teens jailed for killing 17-year-old outside McDonald's

The blaze was brought under control by 8.30am but nine engines were still damping down at the site this afternoon, the fire service said.

Some 280 people were evacuated from the hotel and taken to a welfare centre organised by the council.

Sky News

(c) Sky News 2026: Fire at Folkestone's Grand Burstin Hotel being treated as suspicious, police say

Want to See More from This is the Coast?

Click here to set This is the Coast as a preferred source on Google search.

Love living on the Yorkshire Coast? So do we.

This is the Coast is 100% locally owned and operated. We don’t rely on public funding or government grants—we rely on our community.

Producing trusted, fact-checked local news takes time and resources. If you value having a dedicated team of professional journalists fighting for our region, please consider supporting us.

Help keep the Yorkshire Coast informed for the price of a coffee a month.

Support Local Journalism Today

More from National News

Follow Us

Get Our Apps

Our Apps are now available for iOS, Android and Smart Speakers.

  • Available on the App Store
  • Available on Google Play
  • Just ask Amazon Alexa
  • Available on Roku

Today's Weather

  • Scarborough

    Sunny intervals

    High: 20°C | Low: 10°C

  • Filey

    Sunny intervals

    High: 20°C | Low: 10°C

  • Whitby

    Sunny intervals

    High: 19°C | Low: 11°C

  • Bridlington

    Sunny intervals

    High: 19°C | Low: 9°C

  • Hornsea

    Sunny intervals

    High: 19°C | Low: 9°C

  • Driffield

    Sunny intervals

    High: 19°C | Low: 9°C

News