Ilkeston pet shop 'extensively damaged' in fire but no animals hurt

Firefighters said the first floor and roof were "well alight"

A pet shop has been "extensively damaged" in a fire, but no animals have been hurt, a fire service has said.

Firefighters were called to 1st 4 Pets on Bath Street in Ilkeston at about 16:30 BST on Saturday and worked through the night to contain the blaze.

Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service said no-one was injured and the owner had confirmed no animals were kept inside overnight.

A spokeswoman said firefighters had found the blaze "started accidentally".

She said it was "due to a naked flame coming into contact with combustible materials".

The fire crews left the scene at about 07:15.

Firefighters from four crews worked through the night to contain the blaze

In a post on Facebook, a spokesperson for the shop thanked people for their offers of help and confirmed the animals had been out of the shop since the end of last month.

This was, they said, because their animal activities licence had expired a couple of weeks ago, and they were in the process of renewing it.