FIRE AT THE ROYAL OAK INN

In Winsford, Somerset, England

While painting en plein air on April 21, 2001, Ruthie Windsor-Mann noticed flames on the thatched roof near the chimney of The Royal Oak Inn.  The day was a dreary Saturday and most customers were too busy rushing into the pub warmed by fireplaces to notice the fire on the roof.  Before the fire brigade arrived, Dan, a waiter, climbed on the roof and attempted to put out the flames with anything wet.  This meant tea and coffee.  Ruthie was the first to notice the flames.  She alerted the authorities and then completed the painting showing Dan on the roof.  Below are two of the many articles that appeared in English newspapers throughout the region:

“This Is the West Country”

BLAZE DAMAGES HISTORIC PUB

One of Exmoor’s most historic pubs, the 12^th century Royal Oak at Winsford suffered tens of thousands of pounds damage when fire ripped into its thatched roof-for the second time in six years.

Easter holiday visitors had to abandon meals and evacuate the bars after American artist Ruthie Windsor-Mann, who was staying at the pub with her mother, noticed flames licking from the roof just after 2pm last Saturday.

Mrs. Windsor-Mann was working on a painting of the Grade two listed pub but her quick action in raising the alarm prevented the devastating damage caused in the 1995 blaze when a chimney fire practically gutted the building and resulted in a nine-month closure.

This time a spark from a fire in one of the two inglenooks is thought to have ignited the thatch.  Half the roof was lost, with a couple of beams, and the first and ground floors were damaged by water, but the owners Charlie and Sheila Steven hope to reopen in six to eight weeks.

Sunday Independent

INN TROUBLE

One of Prince Charles’ favourite inns on Exmoor was badly damaged by fire yesterday-for the second time in recent years.  Guests and villagers helped salvage furniture and possessions from the historic Royal Oak at Winsford, near Minehead, after the blaze was spotted by a holidaymaker from America.  Ruthie Windsor-Mann from North Carolina, who had booked into the inn for five nights with her mother, said she was working on an oil of the inn when she noticed a flame licking on the thatched roof….Mrs. Windsor-Mann, who is spending two months in this country on a painting holiday, was last night staying at another hotel nearby.  She raised the alarm shortly after 2pm and it was two hours before the firemen got the blaze under control.  More than 40 firefighters with six pumps and specialised equipment were called out from stations all over Exmoor and as far away as Taunton and Bridgwater.