THE moment a fire broke out on the site of a derelict, historic hotel was captured on a doorbell camera.

Smoke billowing into the sky during the fire at The Raven in Droitwich has been captured on a resident's Ring doorbell.

Shocked residents from across the town saw smoke pouring from the rear of the Raven Hotel on St Andrews Road after a fire broke out on Monday (July 31).

The severe fire, which is believed to be arson, caused extensive damage to the first floor and roof space and spread to nearby conifer trees.

Ring Doorbell footage, captured by Antique & Vintage by Luca De Luca, shows a thick cloud of smoke emerging from the fire.

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Fire crews arrived just before 7pm to put out the fire and remained at the hotel until 10.15pm.

A spokesperson from Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue said: "Two crews from Droitwich Fire Station were joined by two crews from Worcester along with the aerial ladder platform from Worcester and the incident command unit from Wyre Forest after numerous calls about the incident.

"They responded to reports of smoke issuing from a two-storey, derelict, thatched building, measuring approximately 20m by 15m, accessed off St Andrews Road behind a former hotel.

"It turned out to be a severe fire affecting all the first floor and roof space with the flames spreading towards large conifer trees.

"A water relay was in use and the incident was sectorised.

"Crews wearing breathing apparatus tackled the fire with main jets and a hose reel jet while the aerial ladder platform was used to check for hot spots.

"The fire was extinguished with crews cutting away and dampening down before they left the incident at 10.14pm.

"A reinspection at midnight by a Droitwich crew using a thermal imaging camera revealed no hot spots.

"There were no casualties and the police were informed, with arson suspected as the cause of the fire."

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The hotel closed in 2010 and is a grade II listed building that dates back to the sixteenth century and was also used as a wedding venue.

The hotel closed when a decision was taken to move all business from the hotel in St Andrew's Street to a sister hotel, the Chateau Impney.