A RAGING thatch fire at a Grade II listed cottage was tackled by around 100 firefighters on Friday April 8.

Several crews worked through the night to put out the blaze at Flood Farm, Hittisleigh.

Senior fire officer Andy Rowse praised the firefighters for their hard work and said the cottage had been saved from being burnt to a shell by fire-resistant boarding underneath the thatch.

Nobody was injured in the fire, but the first floor suffered smoke and water damage, and around a third of the roof was destroyed.

A number of crews attended from a wide area, including Hatherleigh, Moretonhampstead, Bovey Tracey, Ashburton and Exeter.

The alarm was raised by an elderly couple who were in the house when the fire broke out, shortly after 7.30pm. An investigation into the cause of the fire concluded that it was accidental, probably caused by a defective chimney flue.