FIREFIGHTERS from across Devon were called to deal with a serious fire in a thatched cottage at Zeal Monachorum on Tuesday night. The roof of the property, at the end of a terrace of three thatched cottages, was already alight when crews from North Tawton, Okehampton and Crediton first arrived on the scene at around 6pm. Okehampton station officer Ian Donovan said firefighters using breathing apparatus worked ?incredibly hard? to gain control of the fire and stop it spreading. Mr Donovan said: ?At the moment it looks as though it started with a chimney problem. The first crews in attendance started making a break in the roof thatch between the end and the middle cottages to stop it spreading.? Eventually 14 appliances were involved in the blaze throughout the night, using ladders, four hoses, two jets, a thermal imaging camera, a hydraulic platform, water foam carrier and a hose layer and a JCB and trailer, the operation taking over the tiny village. Mr Donovan said: ?The chimney was very unstable so the road was closed. ?It was a difficult job because the roads are very narrow and there were a lot of appliances and a lot of equipment that all had to be carried up the road.? Mr Donovan said ultimately the job had been ?very successful? ? firecrews removed all the furniture to the garden and ultimately the village hall and damage to the inside of the cottage was kept to a minimum, although the roof was destroyed. No-one was injured in the incident and no other properties affected.