An 'electrical fault' has been confirmed as the cause of a fire in a Weymouth supermarket earlier today. 

Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service were called to Morrisons on Dorchester Road at around 11am.

As reported, staff and customers had to be evacuated from the store which then had to be closed along with the petrol station. 

Several members of staff were out in the rain on Dorchester Road telling motorists looking to enter the store's car park that it was shut and that a fire had broken out. 

The rest of the staff were taking shelter in the trolley parks as the fire service assessed the situation.

(Image: Andy Jones)

It has now been revealed that smoke in fact came from an 'electrical fault' in the store’s plant room to the rear of the building.  

The fire service left the scene at 1.30pm, with the problem left in the hands of the store’s electrician. 

A spokesperson for Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service said: "There was no obvious fire, it appears to have been a fault in the electrics within the plant room that caused the smoke, but it was left with the store’s electrician."

The supermarket and petrol station both remain closed and it is not yet known when they will reopen. 

A company spokesman said they will not reopen this evening as further safety checks are being carried out.