City centre hotel reopens after coffee shop fire

The fire service said crews worked floor-by-floor to clear smoke from the six-storey building

A city centre hotel forced to close following a fire in a coffee shop below the building has reopened.

Seven fire engines were sent after the blaze broke out at Costa Coffee under the six-storey Premier Inn on Isambard Brunel Road, Portsmouth, last Wednesday afternoon.

About 65 guests who had been set to stay at the hotel were all booked into other Premier Inns in the city after the fire spread smoke throughout the building.

The hotel chain said it had now fully reopened, the coffee shop remains closed. The fire service said no injuries were reported and the fire was believed to have been started accidentally.

It took several hours for firefighters to clear the smoke from the building