A MOTHER and toddler quit their remote woodland home near Chudleigh Knighton after a fire broke out in the roof space.

Firefighters were shown the way by local residents after the 999 alarm at the isolated spot was raised just after midday yesterday (Monday, March 6).

Quick work by the three crews who responded prevented the fire destroying the rest of the converted chalet-type property. No one was hurt in the blaze which was extinguished by teams from Ashburton, Bovey Tracey and Newton Abbot.

An off-road vehicle from Buckfastleigh was also despatched. Just 30 per cent of the roof was damaged in the fire with 40 per cent of the rest of the property suffering smoke and heat damage.

A fire spokesman at the scene admitted: ‘It could have been a lot worse than it was.’

He thanked residents at the small community for taking the trouble to position someone on the main road to direct the pumps down a rough track to the difficult-to-find homestead.

‘It would have been difficult to find the place without help from the person guiding us in,’ said the spokesman. Four sets of breathing gear were worn by firefighters who used two hosereel jets and and a cover jet to extinguish the flames.

It’s thought an electrical fault in a fuse board was the likely cause of the incident.