15926AN 89-year-old woman was left homeless after the house she has lived in for 65 years was badly damaged by fire on Tuesday afternoon.

Margot Ann Bennett, who was awarded with the MBE for her work with the government intelligence services MI5 and MI6, was out with her carer, Lithuanian-born Jurate Miniotiene, when the blaze began at about 3.30pm.

Flames soon took hold of the roof space of her house and the adjoining property belonging to Laurence and Elizabeth Ellis.

A passer-by alerted Mrs Ellis who rang the fire brigade. Soon six fire crews were at the scene and a hydraulic platform was called in from Swindon.

At the height of the blaze, 47 firefighters and officers from Devizes, Melksham, Calne, Salisbury, Cooper Avon fire service, Trowbridge, Chippenham, Warminster, Swindon and the brigade HQ in nearby Potterne were at the scene.

Don and Hazel Tanswell, who live next door to Miss Bennett, were returning home when they saw the smoke. Mrs Tanswell said: "We thought someone was having a bonfire until we turned into Wick Lane.

"We saw a crowd of people standing around watching and someone said the fire brigade had been called.

"At that time we didn't know if Miss Bennett and Jurate were still in there. I let myself in and found no-one was there.

"I went to Hillworth Park to see if Jurate had taken Miss Bennett there, but they had gone into town.

"This is a terrible thing. She has lived in the house for most of her life and all her memories are in there."

Miss Bennett's great nephew farmer Tim Carson from Alton Barnes said:"This is a terrible blow to her.

"She has lived in that house at least since the War and probably before it. We have managed to find alternative accommodation for her in the town while the repairs are being done."

Mr and Mrs Ellis were distraught at the damage done to their property.

Mr Ellis said: "The roof space is gone but I don't know at the moment what other damage there is."

The Tanswells offered refuge to Miss Bennett and Miss Miniotiene and the two women stayed with the them on Tuesday.

It is thought Mr and Mrs Ellis are staying with relatives while looking for rented accommodation.

The cause of the fire is as yet unknown, although it is thought builders were carrying out work at Miss Bennett's house on Tuesday, hours before the fire broke out.

Pip Flowers, station officer at Devizes fire station, said it was one of the most difficult fires tackled by his crews recently.

He said: "When the first crews arrived they were faced with a smoke-filled roof space.

"At that time they couldn't see the seat of the fire.

"Then it broke through at the front of the roof.

"We couldn't get ladders up to the roof so we called up the hydraulic platform from Swindon.

"Using a thermal imaging camera we were able to relay pictures to the fire officers on the ground and show them where the centre of the blaze was."

Wick Lane remained closed until 10pm. The last of the fire tenders left at 10.15pm but Mr Flowers and his men monitored the situation throughout the night.