Firefighters on scene of blaze at historic Wimbotsham church
Fire crews have been tackling a blaze at a historic church in Wimbotsham this morning.
A spokesman said 50 firefighters and nine appliances have been on the scene of the incident on Church Road, which they were called to just after 6am.
Terry Pinto, station manager at King's Lynn, told the Lynn News: "It's a real terrible shame to have a fire of this extent."
He added: "It was a seriously well-developed fire – the crews have been working really, really hard and they have been able to save part of the building."
The church, St Mary the Virgin, is believed to have been built in 1175, and it holds monthly family services of Holy Communion, every fourth Sunday of the month.
"It's a very sad day," Mr Pinto added.
At 9.30am, a fire service spokesman said the incident was ongoing, and crews were likely to continue working on it throughout the day to damp down the building.
People have been asked to avoid the area to allow the crews to work on the incident.
A police spokeswoman said officers were also called to the scene at about 6.20am to assist with the incident.
She said a number of road closures are currently in place, which the police are assisting with.
