A PASSING vicar spotted his local pub's thatched roof on fire and battled the flames with a hose pipe in the dark as fire crews were scrambled from across the district.
The Rising Sun at West Bagborough was totally destroyed on Wednesday night along with an adjoining terraced cottage in a blaze which ripped through the two properties at devastating speed.
Everyone, including landlady Elena Ellis, managed to escape unharmed but the pub, which has separate upstairs accommodation, and the cottage were left gutted. Investigators have yet to establish a cause for the fire.
By daybreak, all that was left of the village pub and the cottage, which is rented by three young men, was just a burned-out shell.
Flames were first spotted on the roof by the Rev. Michael Hubbard who lives opposite and was returning home with his wife at around 8.15pm.
They both raced into the pub to raise the alarm and told staff to ring the fire brigade while Mr Hubbard ran for a hosepipe and starting tackling the fire, which was spreading rapidly.
He told the Free Press: "When we saw the flames, we shot into the pub and told the chef to ring 999 because the roof was on fire - but at first everyone looked at us as if we were barking mad and it was a joke.
"Everyone then came out to see and the fire brigade was called and I went and got the hosepipe. But the fire was getting worse and worse with the pub being thatched and so flames then shot along under the roof and then reached the cottage."
By the time fire crews arrived, the thatched roof of the pub was well alight and large sections of thatch were slipping off.
Resources were stretched to the limit with pumps from Williton, Taunton, Yeovil, Wellington, Bridgwater, Wiveliscombe, Glastonbury and Chard all at the scene.
Firefighters battled with the blaze into the early hours of yesterday (Thursday) morning using 20 breathing apparatus, six hose jets and six main jets.
The fire was eventually extinguished shortly after midnight, although fire crews stayed on damping down and the smouldering buildings.
Fire brigade spokesman Paul Gardner said: "We maintained a presence throughout the night, damping down and salvaging property, but we are still investigating a cause. When we arrived the pub was well alight.
"As well as tackling the fire, we doused nearby properties with water to prevent the fire spreading including a cottage opposite as it was just six metres away and, with that amount of heat, it was important to protect other properties."
Yesterday Taunton Deane Borough Council's building control experts were on site making the charred remains safe.