MORE than 40 fire fighters were called to a thatch fire at acottage in Winterbourne Tomson, near Blandford on Wednesday night.
Eight crews used hose reel jets and breathing apparatus to extinguish the fire, with 10 appliances attending the scene at the height of the blaze.
Fire fighters also tried to make breaks in the thatch to stop the fire spreading.
The fire is believed to have started when a chimney fire spread to the roof.
Crews were able to save around 50 per cent of the roof.
The fire was scaled down around 11.35pm last night although fire fighters remained on the scene, stripping away parts of the roof until around 3am this morning.
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