Fire crews from Norfolk were called to help fight a fire which ripped through a thatched cottage.

Crews were called to the two-storey cottage in Pound Corner, Barningham, in Suffolk, at just after 9.20pm on Tuesday (January 21) night.

Two fire crews from Diss, two from Thetford and one from East Harling were among 16 engines initially called to the incident.

They helped their colleagues from Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service, including from Brandon, Woodbridge, Eye, Haverhill, Bury St Edmunds, Elmswell, Ixworth and Newmarket.

The two occupants of the house safely escaped without any injury and are now safe in the care of the fire service.

Three engines remained at the scene this morning to assess the damage done to the property in daylight.

The blaze is believed to have started after a fire in the chimney spread to the thatched roof.

Speaking to BBC Suffolk this morning, group commander Will Tell, who was at the scene of the fire, said: "It was a rapidly escalating fire.

"It was very intense, our thoughts go out to the occupants who have lost most of their belongings. They are being supported by some fantastic neighbours who have given them somewhere to stay.

"We do not know the cause of the fire at the moment. We will have a specialist fire investigator trying to establish what caused it.

"As far as we know it had been a normal family evening.

"They had been out shopping and cooked some dinner. They were watching TV when they saw the fire had started."

A spokesperson for Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service confirmed that 75pc of the roof was on fire when firefighters arrived on the scene and that the total area affected was 30mx30m.

UK Power Networks are reported to be on scene alongside Suffolk Highways.