Second thatch fire in Hampshire this weekend

At 17:30 on Saturday 15 March we were called to a fire in the roof of a thatched property. The residents had self evacuated, but the fire was sadly already affecting a large portion of the roof.

At the height of the incident, there were 10 fire engines and over 50 firefighters in attendance. Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service were also in attendance, working with Hampshire crews to extinguish the fire. Two fire engines remained on scene overnight to monitor and dampen down hotspots. The stop message was issued at 14:15 on Sunday 16 March.

Group Manager Jim Couch, who was incident commander last night said:
“Last night we were alerted to a fire at a thatched cottage in Poulner, Ringwood. 10 fire engines and over 50 firefighters were swiftly on scene to tackle the blaze. The cause of the fire is still being investigated.

“Thanks to go our colleagues from Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service, who worked with our crews throughout the evening to get the fire under control.

“There has unfortunately been significant damage to the property. It’s a devastating loss for the residents of the property, but thankfully there was no injuries.

“These types of incidents can cause concern for other residents of thatched properties. I encourage anyone living in a property with a thatched roof to read our fire safety advice for thatched properties.”

LIVE NEWS FEED

*14:30*
The stop message was issued at 14:15, all fire service personnel have left the scene.

*14:05*
Crews will shortly be leaving the scene.

*11:30*
Two fire engines are still on scene, with crews monitoring and damping down any hotspots. An investigation is taking place to determine the cause of the fire.

*06:00*
We have further reduced our presence to two fire engines onsite, and the fire has died down significantly. We still remain on scene, and expect to be there for another few hours. This will be for damping down and tackling any hotspots. We don’t currently have information on the cause of the blaze.

–16 March 2025–

*22:00*
We’re downscaling our response to this incident, reducing to four fire engines. We’ll have a presence on scene overnight.

*20:30*
10 fire engines, additional support vehicles and over 50 firefighters are on scene. Firefighters are using breathing apparatus and 4 hose reel jets to bring the fire under control.

*18:53*
There are six fire engines at the scene from Dorset & Wiltshire. They join firefighters, fire engines and support vehicles from Beaulieu, Cosham, Eastleigh, Fordingbridge, Hightown, Lyndhurst, Redbridge, Ringwood, St Mary’s. Residents are being advised to avoid the area where possible, and keep windows and doors closed due to potential smoke in the area.