A community fear they will take a 'massive hit' after the roof of a Nottinghamshire village hall was completely gutted in a fire. Crews from Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service were called to the fire at the Gotham Memorial Hall, off Nottingham Road, on Thursday, February 16.
According to the fire service, there was fire damage to the whole of the building, which included a library and the Orchard Surgery GP practice. Five crews were tackling the blaze, with firefighters asking all residents of the nearby Boswell Crescent and Wodehouse Avenue to keep their windows and doors shut due to smoke.
Nottingham Road was closed in both directions due to the fire between Kegworth Road and Bidwell Crescent. Traffic was slow in the area between Clifton and East Leake.
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Neighbours told of their sorrow after the incident, with members of the community hoping it will be rebuilt "as soon as possible". Chris O'Neill, 42, said: "I've got my daughters off for half-term and they've been quite upset and worried about the place as they spend a lot of time at the park and all the local kids have parties at the hall.
"It's going to be a massive hit to the community and I just hope that it is all rebuilt as quickly as possible. It's the heart of the village at the end of the day.
"Everything centres around the hall. It's devastating and shocking. It's got a lot of importance to the village, it's a memorial hall so there's that aspect but its also the hub of the village."
Another resident Cheryl Thorley, 63, said: "It's absolutely heartbreaking. I've lived here my whole life and it's just such a big part of the community. It makes me want to cry.
"Whenever something happens in the village we all pull together. There's so many little clubs and that who go there (the hall) - it's so sad. It's a massive part of the community."
Diana James, 73, said: "It's such a shame. We are a very close-knit community here and everyone is just so sad. It's awful. We were only at the hall the other week. There's never any problems in Gotham."
Talking to Nottinghamshire Live about the nearby surgery being affected by the fire, Marie Bryans, 43, said: "I was on my way to the pharmacy and then I just came down the road and saw all the fire engines. It's a shock.
"That has been my surgery since I was a child and the thought of it going up in smoke is quite upsetting and frightening. It's heartbreaking." When told no injuries had been reported, she said: "Thank God nobody was hurt."
Dr Nigel Cartwright, who had been a GP in Gotham for more than 30 years, told Nottinghamshire Live: "The memorial hall and Orchard Surgery are at the heart of Gotham village and have been for generations.
"The fire at the village hall and the surgery is going to have a big impact on this community. In the short-term we will have everyone go from the village surgery to our other site which is the Orchard Surgery in Kegworth.
"That will provide us with capacity issues but we will do our best to deliver a great service for patients and we hope that they can bear with us. In the longer term, obviously the service will need to have a look at a rebuild of recreational and medical facilities in Gotham."
Rushcliffe borough Councillor Rex Walker, who represents Gotham for the Conservatives, described the blaze as "disastrous". When asked if he thought the community would pull together, he said "definitely". He added: "It's a very close community and I know the people will rally round quickly and effectively to get it (the hall) rebuilt."
In a statement shortly after 2pm, Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service said: "The fire is mostly extinguished but we are likely to be on scene for another few hours while we deal with hotspots and make the building safe. There is fire damage to the whole of the building, which includes the library and GP surgery. No one has been injured.
"We ask residents to keep windows and doors shut if they can see or smell smoke. Thank you to residents for their patience while we work to resolve the incident."
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