FIREFIGHTERS were called to tackle a house fire caused by solar panels in Old Basing this afternoon (Saturday, May 21).

The alarm was raised by a staff member from the nearby bakery who saw smoke coming from the roof, allowing the property to be safely evacuated.

Crews from Basingstoke, Rushmoor, Hartley Wintney, Andover and Eastleigh attended just before 3pm. On arrival, they found the roof was well alight and used four hose reel jets and the aerial ladder to tackle the blaze.

Thankfully, no one was injured but the roof and part of the first floor were badly damaged.

Station Manager Simon Forster, the incident commander, said: “It’s believed the fire was caused by solar panels on the roof.

“Our thanks go to The Street Bakeshop who stayed open to allow us to use their facilities and who saw the smoke and rushed over.”

By 5pm crews had started salvaging items from the house and were damping down. The stop message was received shortly after 6.30pm, with the incident scaled down to two fire engines and the aerial ladder.

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