Hotel Fire in Newquay

A hotel in Newquay has been damaged after a fire broke out in the building on the morning of the 14th December 2011. More than fifty firefighters were called to the Pendennis Hotel at Mount Wise, which has been occupied by squatters, on Wednesday morning at around 5.30am.

Twelve people from a nearby building were evacuated into a local hotel and the surrounding area was cordoned off. Nigel Vincent from Cornwall fire and rescue service told the news provider: "The wind was in our favour. The Pendennis is contained in its own grounds.

Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, a 'suitable and sufficient' fire risk assessment must be conducted on all commercial properties in England and Wales. If the fire risk assessment is deemed to be carried out to an insufficient extent, the Responsible Person can face an unlimited fine or a prison sentence of up to two years.

Local police are treating the blaze as suspicious.