The shocking damage to a house in Wiltshire destroyed by fire has now been revealed.
The house, on Milton Avenue in Melksham, has become the centre of a mass investigation after fire tore through the property on Saturday evening, April 18.
It took place just hours after a new family had moved in.
Dorset and Wiltshire Fire Service was called to the scene at around 8pm on Saturday and found a blaze on the first floor and roof space of a residential building, which is made up of two flats.
Four pumping appliances from surrounding towns attended alongside an aerial ladder as well as a pumping appliance from Bath.
One person was given casualty care at the scene by the fire service before being transferred to paramedics.
The fire raged on well into the night and firefighters did not leave the scene until 6.32pm on Sunday morning, April 19.
Now, more than 24 hours on, drone images have show the house blackened and burnt, with the roof almost entirely gone.
Rubble surrounds the property, which remains cordoned off, and investigation work is currently underway.
One family is understood to have only moved into the property hours before the fire broke out.
When asked what happened, a spokesperson for the family said: "We don’t know we only just started unpacking.
"Nothing was on as we had just moved in so nothing was plugged in.
''Thank you so much means a lot nothing was on as we had just moved in so nothing was plugged in the community have been amazing.''
In the wake of the devastating incident, the community has rallied to help provide the residents affected by the fire.
The family of one of the residents whose home was destroyed by the blaze has launched a GoFundMe to raise funds for the mother and her two daughters, who occupied the ground floor.
In a statement shared as part of the fundraiser, Samantha Turk, who launched the fundraiser, said: “The flat above theirs caught fire, which in turn has destroyed her flat. She has been evacuated and placed in temporary accommodation; she is not allowed to return.
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“She has no belongings, only the clothes on their back. Eventually, she will need to rebuild a home, so we would like to raise some money for when the time comes.”
A spokesperson for popular local pub The Grapes said: “All of our hearts go out to those whose lives have been turned upside down by the fire yesterday. So we will be] setting up a donation point right here to help out those families. This is a time for this wonderful community to get together and help out those in need.
“We will be accepting anything that you can spare - children’s clothes and toys, women’s clothes, bedding, towels etc.
“We appreciate all you kindness in advance for helping these families get back on their feet. We are open everyday from 12pm.”
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— Wiltshire Times (@wiltshiretimes) April 13, 2026
In a statement, a spokesperson for Dorset and Wiltshire Fire Service added: “We were called at 7:58pm yesterday, 18 April, with reports of a property fire on Milton Avenue, Melksham.
"A total of four pumping appliances attended (Trowbridge, Devizes, Bradford on Avon and Chippenham) along with the aerial ladder and a pumping appliance from Bath (Avon FRS).
“The incident was scaled back to three pumping appliances overnight to continue damping down and our stop was in at 6:27am today. The last crew left the scene just before 8am today.”
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