A FIRE which broke out in a building on the site of Droitwich’s Raven Hotel, St Andrew’s Road, is believed to have been started deliberately.
Numerous calls were made to the fire service about the blaze after smoke was seen billowing from the two-storey derelict thatched building around 6.50pm yesterday evening (Monday).
Two crews from Droitwich Fire Station were joined by two crews from Worcester and the aerial ladder platform, also from Worcester, along with the incident command unit from Wyre Forest.
The building is behind the historic hotel and not thought to be part of the listed structure.
The first floor and roof space were affected and the flames were spreading towards two large conifer trees.
A water relay was in use and fire crews fought the blaze with water jets.
The aerial ladder platform was used to check for hot spots.
The fire was extinguished with crews cutting away and dampening down before they left the incident at 10.14pm last night.
A reinspection at midnight by a Droitwich crew using a thermal imaging camera revealed no hot spots.
Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service confirmed there were no casualties and said the police had been informed as arson was deemed the cause of the blaze.
In March, Droitwich Police issued a warning to people not to enter the Raven Hotel or surrounding buildings after numerous reports following the issue being raised at a town council meeting.
In July, during an exclusive interview with the Standard, the owners Inroka confirmed it would be stepping up security as it expressed its passion for the building and detailed the exciting plans for its future.
Anyone with information on the incident last night should call police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
