Fenland: Fire Destroys Home

A fire has destroyed a home in the village of Elm in the Fenland part of Cambridgeshire.

Crews were called to a fire at Primrose Cottage on South Brink at around 1am today.

Firefighters battled to put the flames out until around 12:30pm.

One fire crew remains at the scene.

Crews have since established that the fire was an accident, and most likely to have been started by electrical equipment.

One man was inside the property, but escaped unhurt.

Ady Slack, Station Commander, said: "When firefighters arrived there was a well developed fire in a two-storey cottage. One man was safely out of the property after his smoke alarm alerted him to a fire.

Flames were coming through the roof of the conservatory and had spread to the lounge area by the time crews arrived.

The fire quickly took hold of the property and the roof and first floor have since fallen through, leaving just the shell of a house.

Sadly, this home has been completely devastated, however, the man inside made it out alive and that is thanks to his working smoke alarm. 

We would urge all families to make sure they have a correctly fitted working smoke alarm, which is regularly tested."