A landlord and landlady have lost their home and business after a fire gutted a Shropshire pub.
More than 40 firefighters tackled the blaze at the Tayleur Arms in Longdon-upon-Tern, near Bratton, in the early hours of Wednesday.
About 90% of the property was damaged, the fire service said.
Richard and Eve Harvey had lived at the pub for five years with their two sons and employed 20 members of staff.
Mr Harvey discovered the fire coming from downstairs.
\”I got to the women\’s toilet door and could see smoke billowing out the door,\” he said.
\”At that point I put the fire extinguisher down as I could hear crackling above me and in front of me.
\”I realised [the situation] was far more dangerous than I could handle.\”
He told his wife to get their son and dog to safety but, he said, by the time he left the building \”the whole lot was just going [up in flames]\”.
Mr Harvey\’s sister Jackie Cameron said: \”It\’s gutting because it\’s taken a lot of hard work to build up.
\”I can\’t express how hard [Mr and Mrs Harvey have] had to work, they\’ve worked solidly for 14, 15, 16, hours every day.
\”They\’ve lost their business and they\’ve lost their home.\”
The Wellington to High Ercall road was closed while firefighters tackled the blaze. Investigations have been taking place to establish the cause of the fire.
