Fire destroys 200-year-old cottage

An investigation has been launched after a thatched cottage in Hampshire was destroyed by a fire.
Cherry Tree Cottage, in Woodgreen Common, close to Fordingbridge, was said to have been about 200 years old.

Around 80 firefighters from Fordingbridge, Ringwood, Verwood, Salisbury, Burley, New Milton, Cranborne, Beaulieu, Lyndhurst, Eastleigh and St Marys attended the blaze, which happened at 12:45am, last Thursday morning.

Fire crews worked until the early hours damping down the scene.

Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service’s Area Manager Andy Bowers said:

“Both the roof and first floor of the thatched cottage were well alight when our fire crews first arrived on the scene.

“The incident could potentially have been much worse though, had crews not acted so quickly and efficiently, with adjacent properties being so close.

“As with most thatched property fires, the fire spread very quickly and unfortunately both the roof and first floor were severely damaged.

“Firefighters from Hampshire, Wiltshire, and Dorset worked closely together to salvage contents from the ground floor of the property.”

It has been confirmed that the couple living in the cottage and their children managed to safely escape the fire and nobody else was injured in the incident.

A probe is now underway into the cause of the blaze.