'Maybe we are not meant to live here' says owner of county's last thatched house which went up in flames for a second time

THE last thatched house in County Durham has gone up in smoke for the second time in 12 years.
Levy Pool Farm House, near Bowes, caught fire last week.  Four fire crews spent two-and-a-half hours tackling the roof blaze and had to pull water from a nearby stream to put it out. It had been seriously damaged by a fire previously in 2005.
Owner Peter Coverdale said: “I think maybe we are not meant to live here.”
A neighbour alerted the emergency services just before 8.30pm last Thursday (May 18) and rang Mr Coverdale soon after.  But his wife, Sue, was still inside the house unaware of the fire raging above her. 
“She was cooking tea while the house was burning away – she was totally unaware,” said Mr Coverdale. “That was the only panic – my son had tried to ring her and I phoned my daughter.  She was concerned and we went to the house thinking ‘oh God’. She got out, but she left my tea on the side.”
It is the second time Mr Coverdale’s grade II-listed home has been struck by fire.
The couple spent 14 years restoring the 17th century farmhouse before the heather-thatched roof was completely destroyed in 2005.
However, the 60-year-old stonemason revealed the damage was nowhere near as bad as last time.
He said: “The whole house smells of smoke which is not very nice and there was quite a bit of water ingress but nothing like the last time.
“90 to 95 per cent of the house has been protected – it’s just the roof which has burned off.
“It looks a very sad and sorry state but last time it was disastrous.”
The Coverdales, who also run Cross Lanes Organic Farm, installed a concrete deck below the farmhouse attic after the 2005 fire which helped stop the flames from spreading.
Its design also ensured much of the water was kept out.  Mr Coverdale suspected a spark from the home’s Georgian range could have been the trigger for the blaze.
“The thatch was so dry – we’ve had no rain until today (Friday),” he said.
“It’s what happens when you live in a thatched house – that’s why most people changed years ago.”
Some firefighters from the first blaze returned to the same scene 12 years on to put the fire out.
Friends and neighbours of the family have rallied around in the meantime and Mr Coverdale thanked them for their support and kindness.
He added: “People have been great – everybody is full of sympathy which we don’t need really. There are people much worse off – losing a child is something to worry about. This is only property at the end of the day. It’s replaceable.”
The farmhouse was abandoned in the 1920s and taken on by the Army between the wars. It was restored to its original thatched state at the turn of this century.
Minor repairs to the roof had been booked in for the next couple of weeks but Mr Coverdale said the thatcher would have a bigger job on his hands than normal.
He added: “It’s one of the finest examples of its type.
“It’s a bit of a shock still – we could have done without it as we’re both getting on a bit and we’re both very busy – it’s just another thing to do.
“I’d like to thank everyone who has offered help for their kindness – people come together when things like this happen.”
Four appliances including two from Barnard Castle, one from Bishop Auckland and one from Middleton-in-Teesdale were joined by a water tanker from Spennymoor to fight the fire.
It was eventually put out at 11pm.