Inside devastating fire that wrecked Hugh | UK News

In 2012, a devastating fire swept through the property of movie star chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, which proudly stood on River Cottage Park Farm close to Axminster, Devon, as a Seventeenth-century cottage. His River Cottage was primarily used as a venue and cookery college, but after firefighters spent three hours tackling the blaze, the building’s roof was fully destroyed, and what remained was just a shell of its former bustling glory. At the time of the fire, Hugh was in Antarctica filming, and it was a local gardener who raised the alarm.

According to reviews, emergency companies, including police, eight fire engines and 80 firefighters, had been deployed to the scene. In a assertion, Mike Burroughs, of Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service, said: “It is too early to speculate on the cause of the fire, but I can categorically state that the fire did not start in the wood-fired bread oven or the fish smoker.” This got here after rumours emerged that the blaze began after a wood-burning range was left on following a mackerel and fillet fish cookery class.

While firefighters had been making an attempt to extinguish the cottage, workers at the River Cottage headquarters had been desperately making an attempt to contact Hugh, but the chef was out of radio vary, filming in the Southern Ocean. After 36 hours, the workforce has finally been in a position to contact him via satellite tv for pc.

Addressing involved followers and locals, Hugh launched a assertion and penned: “I’m so shocked to hear the news of the fire in our barn at Park Farm, our River Cottage HQ. I’m filming a long way away right now, and it’s just impossible to imagine.

“Obviously, it’s a huge relief that nobody’s been hurt, and I’m very grateful to the local fire brigade for their prompt response and all their help.”

The chef continued: “I understand there’s already a plan underway to set up a working field kitchen so we can continue to host our events, teach our courses and look after our guests in the coming months.

“I’ve no doubt the whole River Cottage team will be pulling together to make this happen, and in due course, we’ll set about restoring our lovely Devon barn to its former glory. Thanks so much to all those who have sent us messages of support.”

The cooking college contained around 10 ovens, each related to an particular person gasoline cylinder, which was concerned in the fire.

The 400-year-old barn underwent in depth restoration and rebuilding, which was accomplished the next 12 months. This included a new purpose-built instructing space, with the unique barn getting used for River Cottage occasions, weddings, and themed eating.

An investigation by Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue didn’t set up an precise trigger of the fire.