Huge blaze rips through hotel

Sarah HallA huge blaze has ripped through a hotel on the Norfolk and Cambridgeshire border, with 10 fire crews battling to prevent the flames from spreading to other homes.Sarah Hall

A huge blaze has ripped through a hotel on the Norfolk and Cambridgeshire border, with 10 fire crews battling to prevent the flames from spreading to other homes.

The fire broke out at the Phoenix Hotel in North Brink, Wisbech, just after 1am today (Tuesday). One person who lives nearby suffered smoke inhalation and had to be taken to hospital by ambulance.

Twenty-six people were evacuated from the hotel and surrounding homes and at its height, firefighters feared the building could collapse.

Maurice Moore, incident commander for Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue, said: 'This is a really difficult job because of the age of the building, its height and the fact it is a terrace.

'There was great potential for it to spread, causing a significant amount of damage to this historic area of Wisbech.

'Thankfully the firefighters managed to contain the fire and stop it from spreading out to other buildings

'Obviously there is smoke damage, but I would like to thank firefighters at the scene who worked hard to stop the spread of fire.'

The blaze was tackled by 10 fire crews, with the help of three turntable ladders.

As of 6.10am today the area around the town's Freedom Bridge and North Brink Road were closed.