Minor fires at Axminster and Beer hospitality businesses

The George Hotel in Axminster was temporarily evacuated after a small. Fire was discovered in the kitchen on Saturday night.  

Staff discovered the fire underneath a griddle in the kitchen and reported it to the fire service immediately, but were able to extinguish it themselves while a full evacuation of the hotel was carried out. 

Fire crews from Axminster, Colyton and Lyme Regis attended and used a ventilation fan to clear the property of smoke. 

One member of staff was treated for smoke inhalation, but no-one was injured.

A statement from The George Hotel read: "We were commended by our local fire service for the way in which we handled this… Thank you to the crews of Axminster, Colyton and Lyme Regis fire service for their quick response."

The hotel's kitchen remained closed on Sunday while further safety checks were carried out.

Fire crews also attended a small fire broke in the kitchen of a pub in Beer on Monday.

Firefighters from Seaton, Sidmouth and Colyton were called to the pub in Fore Street at 1.40pm.

The Seaton crew arrived first and confirmed that no other appliances were needed.

They found smoke coming from a freezer so this was taken outside and extinguished with a bucket of water.