THREE cottages were completely destroyed by the huge blaze in Bransbury.

Firefighters managed to recover as many of the occupant’s belongings as possible during a salvage operation.

At 4am the emergency services scaled down their efforts but continued to remove the thatch and protect the fourth cottage.

What happened last night? Click here for the original story

"Three of the four cottages have been 100 per cent destroyed by the incident, whilst the fourth remains safe and unaffected," said a Hampshire Fire spokesperson.

An inspection of the affected properties is now being carried out by an officer and an Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) structural engineer.

See the drone footage by Mike King by clicking here

Incident Commander Rob Cole said: "Thank you to all the emergency services who attended this unfortunate incident and worked hard throughout the night to save the properties and household belongings. Thankfully, there were no casualties and we’re pleased one of the cottages could be saved.

"I’d like to extend my thanks to our firefighters and control room staff, and also thank SCAS, Hampshire Police, BRC, and our border colleagues Dorset and Wiltshire and Royal Berkshire fire services for their support."

A fundraiser has been launched for one of the families who have lost their property.

Visit this link to donate: www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/gemma-chopra-1