AROUND 80 firefighters, including crews from Okehampton, Chagford, North Tawton and Hatherleigh, battled through the night last Saturday in their attempts to save a historic pub from destruction. The Old Thatch Inn at Cheriton Bishop was severely damaged by the fire, which destroyed around a third of the thatched roof and first floor of the building. Firefighters used 14 sets of breathing apparatus and six water jets as they struggled to stop the blaze from spreading to neighbouring thatched buildings. The incident support unit was called in from Exeter and a further incident command vehicle from Exmouth, while mechanical diggers were used to strip the thatch from the roof of the Grade II Listed building. Okehampton fire chief Ian Donovan said: ?We managed to make a fire break in the thatched roof between the restaurant and the first terraced house along, so that prevented the fire from spreading further. ?We had to use a lot of breathing apparatus ? the crews were there until about 4am.? Mr Donovan said the firefighters also worked hard to save the contents of the property from being destroyed. There were no serious casualties during the incident, although two firefighters suffered minor injuries. It is believed the fire started in ventilation ducts before spreading to the roof.
