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Blaze at Bleak House

10/04/2006

The former house of Charles Dickens has been damaged by a fire which firefighters fought for much of last night.

Kent fire and rescue service were alerted to Bleak House, Broadstairs, Kent, at 21:26 BST last night and sent six pumps from across the county to tackle the blaze.

Part of the first floor was damaged, but the Charles Dickens museum, which is housed elsewhere on the coastal premises, was spared.

Named after Dickens' famous novel, Bleak House is currently in private hands but the family owners were out at the time of last night's fire.

A Kent fire and rescue spokesperson said: "The damage was restricted to the bedroom and a snooker room directly below. Fire crews salvaged furniture, pictures and other items from the snooker room.

"No one was injured in the incident. The actual cause is uncertain, but is not thought to be suspicious."

Dickens, whose literary masterpieces include Great Expectations and Oliver Twist, wrote David Copperfield while at the1801-built residence, which was at that time known as Fort House.

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