House and garage damaged in fire

Firefighters were called to the scene of a fire affecting a house and adjacent garage in Writtle, near Chelmsford, on Saturday afternoon.

On arrival, crews reported that the building, which is two storeys and measures roughly 10 metres by 7 metres, was around 50% alight.

To allow crews to tackle the fire from above, the officer in charge called for the support of an aerial ladder platform.

By 5.20pm, the fire had been contained to the garage area of the property.

At 6.20pm, firefighters were cutting away material throughout the building to allow them to tackle hotspots within the structure.

Station Manager Ean Summerfield, who led the incident, said: "Firefighters have worked incredibly hard here this evening to firstly get this fire under control and then make the property itself safe.

"This fire was spreading quickly when crews arrived - and while the building has sadly been quite badly damaged, it could easily have been even more significant without their professionalism and determination over these past few hours.

"I'd also like to thank those in the local area for their support - we know it can be worrying seeing such a large amount of smoke, but we really appreciate their patience while the road has been closed."

An investigation into the cause of the fire will be carried out once the scene has fully cooled.