Flames Engulf St Peter Port Restaurant

Fire crews are battling to save a Guernsey restaurant which caught fire overnight.

The island's Fire & Rescue Service is dealing with a major fire that's engulfed the Octopus restaurant at Havelet, in St Peter Port.

The blaze started at around 4am on Saturday 24 February.

Fire's station officer Joyce says it was intense even at that time:

"We tried to make entrance into the building but it was already a deep seated fire, therefore we could not stay in that building very long and we had to withdraw. Our tactic from then on was to fight the fire from outside."

The restaurant opened in July 2016 and is a popular fine dining venue with views over Havelet Bay, Herm and Sark.

Police say the alarm was raised at around 4am. The building is engulfed in grey smoke and by 7am it appeared to be getting worse, with a large sheet of flames visible from the north of Town.

The turntable ladder is being used at the bottom of the Val des Terres to pour jets of water on the roof of the restaurant.

Civil Protection Volunteers and Police have set up road cordons.

While the incident is being dealt with, access to St Peter Port from the Val des Terres or Havelet, meaning the best route is Colborne Road.

Police are asking residents of Havelet and Hauteville to keep their windows closed.

At around 9am, firefighters were heard saying that the main roof of the Octopus restaurant in St Peter Port was close to collapse.

A turntable ladder is based on the lower Val des Terres directing jets of water onto the building. A further fire crew member is on the walkway below, with another hose.

At this stage, it looks like the fire won't be out for some time, and crews will have to stay to ensure it doesn't re-ignite.

Three fire engines and two command vehicles are on the road below Havelet. A pall of grey smoke is drifting above the building and out to sea.

Hydrants in the area are being used for water to fight the fire.

The Val des Terres, South Esplanade and Havelet remain cordoned off to traffic and pedestrians.

Guernsey Police aren't ruling anything out as they investigate the fire. Duty Officer Adam Miller gave this update:

"All lines of enquiry at this very early stage are obviously open. And I would therefore ask that if anyone saw anything suspicious or unusual in the early hours of the morning around the area of La Vallette to contact us at the Police Station."