TWENTY-foot flames leapt from the chimney of one of Suffolk's best known hotels in a blaze drama this morning which saw the historic building 'minutes from disaster'.
Laurence Cawley
TWENTY-foot flames leapt from the chimney of one of Suffolk's best known hotels in a blaze drama this morning which saw the historic building 'minutes from disaster'.
Firefighters feared the flames would spread to the roof of the 550-year-old Bull Hotel in Long Melford when four crews arrived at the scene at 10.30am today.
But the blaze was beaten back and disaster averted, leaving the historic hotel relatively unscathed apart from smoke damage in one of the bars.
The hotel is currently closed as firefighters check the roof for hotspots.
At the scene, Long Melford watch manager Steve Dudden said: “We were within minutes of disaster here.
“When we arrived there were twenty-foot flames pouring out of the chimney and I thought the worst.”
Fire crews from Long Melford, Sudbury and Bury St Edmunds attended the hotel, in Hall Street.
Built in 1450, The Bull sits in the heart of Long Melford, which boasts the longest high street in East Anglia.
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