Wedding goers rescued after fire breaks out at Grade II listed Thornton Manor
Fire crews have worked for a second day dampening down the fire. Video from the Liverpool Echo.
The owners of Grade II-listed Thornton Manor hotel and wedding venue are counting the cost after a huge fire has caused extensive damage.
The fire broke out at the historic building in Wirral, which hosted Brexit talks between Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Ireland's Taoiseach Leo Varadkar in October 2019.
Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service have worked for two nights tackling the fire after receiving a call after 9pm on Saturday 5 February to alert crews to the situation on Manor Road, Thornton Hough.
The hotel was evacuated and a fire involving a boiler was extinguished before the fire service arrived but when they inspected the building, fire was detected in the roof.
Granada Reports reporter Victoria Grimes has the latest from the scene
A wedding goer said he and his wife were woken at 1.30am by firefighters banging on their door telling them to get out as quickly as possible as the building was on fire.
He said: "We were asleep but they hammered on the door for us to get out.
"They were very professional and seemed as if they had the scene under control.
"But there's still smoke billowing out of the house - it wouldn't surprise me if they're here for a day or two."
Another guest said: "The flames had taken over the whole house.
"We could see them flames on the roof and they were about 10 feet high.It's died down this morning but you can still see smoke billowing.
"We're just waiting to hear what can happen to see if we can get in and get our keys so we can go home."
Josh Griffiths, General Manager of the Thornton Manor Estate, said they were unable to comment regarding the fire as it was still being investigated.
But, he added: "We will endeavour to contact all our brides, grooms and event organisers as soon as possible.
"We would like to thank everyone for all their support and patience during this difficult time."
Firefighters have been dealing with two main seats of fire - both of which have now been put out.
The morning after the fire, a spokesman for Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service said: "Firefighting has continued throughout the night at this three storey, grade 2 listed building approximately 2000 square metres, in what has been a challenging incident.
"Firefighters have been dealing with two main seats of fire.
"Emergency Services at scene alongside us are Cheshire Fire & Rescue Service, North West Ambulance Service and Merseyside Police – we would like to thank our blue light colleagues for supporting our response.
"We would also like to thank the Salvation Army for their attendance and providing hot meals to those on site.
"United Utilities, the Environmental Agency and Wirral Council have all been advised of the scale of this ongoing incident.
"Multi agency meetings have taken place at regular intervals throughout the early hours of this morning and a full evacuation of the property has been carried out with a comprehensive search audit completed.
"A structural engineer has been requested with a full structural survey taking place shortly after, as a result, internal firefighting has ceased and safety cordons have been advised and put in place on site."