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| Royal Clarence fire: Engineers assess fire-ravaged hotel | |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Structural engineers have been inspecting a hotel that has been devastated by a fire. | |
| The blaze at the Royal Clarence Hotel, described as England's oldest hotel, started at 05:00 BST on Friday and continues to burn. | The blaze at the Royal Clarence Hotel, described as England's oldest hotel, started at 05:00 BST on Friday and continues to burn. |
| The facade of the building has partially collapsed and its interior walls reduced to rubble. | The facade of the building has partially collapsed and its interior walls reduced to rubble. |
| Firefighters have extinguished the flames but said they were still dealing with some "hotspots". | Firefighters have extinguished the flames but said they were still dealing with some "hotspots". |
| The shell of the building is being monitored with lasers to detect movement, while a thermal imaging camera is helping to show the internal temperature of debris. | |
| Gerald Taylor, from Devon & Somerset Fire Service, said: "Any decision on demolition will be discussed with the fire service, police and local authorities." | |
| "While the public may not be able to see flames, we are still actively fighting the fires that are burning under the debris," he added. | |
| "We're keeping our eye on one hotspot which has climbed from 30 degrees to 140 degrees in the last couple of hours." | |
| The fire broke out above the Castle Fine Art gallery where renovation work was under way, before spreading to the Well House Tavern, a cafe and the hotel. | The fire broke out above the Castle Fine Art gallery where renovation work was under way, before spreading to the Well House Tavern, a cafe and the hotel. |
| Guests at the Royal Clarence were evacuated from their rooms in the middle of the night to another hotel nearby. There were no reported casualties. | Guests at the Royal Clarence were evacuated from their rooms in the middle of the night to another hotel nearby. There were no reported casualties. |
| A spokesman for the fire service said the gallery and hotel had been destroyed by the blaze, but its cause was unknown. | A spokesman for the fire service said the gallery and hotel had been destroyed by the blaze, but its cause was unknown. |
| Fire crews used water from the River Exe hundreds of metres away to help tackle the flames. About 80 firefighters remain at the scene. | Fire crews used water from the River Exe hundreds of metres away to help tackle the flames. About 80 firefighters remain at the scene. |
| At the scene | At the scene |
| Hamish Marshall, BBC South West News | Hamish Marshall, BBC South West News |
| Work continues on the ground to damp down hotspots, but fire crews are now moving to the next phase of this operation. | Work continues on the ground to damp down hotspots, but fire crews are now moving to the next phase of this operation. |
| Firefighters must stop water getting onto the facade of the hotel in case it collapses and structural engineers will assess what will happen when demolition teams move in tomorrow. | |
| Some local shops remain closed and the High Street has not fully reopened. | |
| Holy Communion at Exeter Cathedral was moved to the smaller Chapter House. | |
| Normally up to 400 worshipers attend. Today there was seating for just 100. | |
| People have been sharing their memories of the hotel on social media. | People have been sharing their memories of the hotel on social media. |
| Clare said on Twitter: "So sad to see the devastated Royal Clarence Hotel, lovely memories of birthday lunch with my husband in the wonderful Abode". | Clare said on Twitter: "So sad to see the devastated Royal Clarence Hotel, lovely memories of birthday lunch with my husband in the wonderful Abode". |
| Others are already discussing what should happen to the site of the hotel once it has been cleared. | Others are already discussing what should happen to the site of the hotel once it has been cleared. |
| On BBC Breakfast's Facebook page, Matt said he hoped the facade could be saved, while Lizzie added "I hope they don't put something modern there instead". | On BBC Breakfast's Facebook page, Matt said he hoped the facade could be saved, while Lizzie added "I hope they don't put something modern there instead". |
| Oldest hotel in England? | Oldest hotel in England? |