A THATCHED cottage was devastated after a blaze ripped through its roof.

Nobody was home when the home, in Pit Lane, Tiptree, went up in smoke.

More than 40 fire officers attended the blaze and managed to save some of the homeowners’ valuables, including two pet rabbits.

Nina Head, from Mayland, said her mother, Oona McGrane, owns the property, but lives in France and one of her two brothers lives in the cottage, but was on holiday in Majorca.

She said: “My mum will be coming back from France.

“She will restore the house, definitely. The family has owned it for about 20 years and my mum comes back every two or three months. She was due to come back in a couple of weeks. She will just be a bit early now.

“I want to say a big thank you to all the fire crews which attended.

Neighbour Gina Leigh, who dialled 999 after another neighbour alerted her, also praised the fire service.

She said: “It’s still sinking in. It was very scary.

“The firemen have been absolutely brilliant.”

The fire started at about 11.30am on Saturday.

Assistant divisional officer Vernon Kendall, who was in charge of the fire service’s operation, said: “The crews did a fantastic job in arduous conditions.

“It is thanks to their hard work this fire did not spread to a neighbouring property and the cottage itself did not suffer worse damage.”

“The cottage is still standing, although the roof and its rafters were completely destroyed.”

Eight fire crews were needed to fight the blaze, with firefighters from Tiptree, Witham, Colchester, Maldon, Wivenhoe and Woodham attending.

Tania Shirley, who lives in the village, said she went to see if she could help.

She said: “It is really sad as it was a beautiful cottage.”

“My parents lived in a thatched which burnt down about 25 years ago. I know how awful it can be.”

The fire was out by 2.20pm.

A full investigation will be carried out to establish the cause of the fire, which is thought to have started in the chimney.