Village cottage badly damaged by fire

Eight appliances from as far away as Preston dashed to the village of Bolton-le-Sands at tea-time on Thursday after the mid-terraced property in Highfield Lane caught fire.

Crews managed to stop the blaze spreading to homes on either side, although both properties in Tarn Cottages had to be evacuated.

A fire brigade spokesman explained: “It wasn’t so much the extent of the fire as the distance we had to pump water in from.

“In rural settings it is quite common to hook up appliances in a chain to get water to the scene from quite some way away.

“I understand that the cottages on either side suffered only minor smoke damage, although the roof of the one in the middle was quite badly damaged.”

Crews from Lancaster, Morecambe, Carnforth, Bolton-le-Sands, Preesall, Preston and Fulwood, together with an incident command unit from brigade headquarters, were all deployed.

There were no casualties.