WATCH: Residents react to The Osborne View fire as firefighters continued to tackle the blaze

Firefighters rushed to The Osborne View pub in Hill Head at 2.30am on Thursday, February 22 after reports of smoke and flames in the building. It was not until just before 1pm that it was confirmed that the fire was extinguished.

The mornings events left local residents in shock as they came to terms with the communities loss. Paul Tebbett of Hill Head said: "I have been coming to this pub for the last 30 years. I'm there every Friday night with my dogs, it's really sad news. Personally I would like to send my condolences to the staff past and present, it's been a great boozer for all of us. My wife woke me up at five o'clock this morning after walking the dogs."

Paul is worried that the loss will leave people in the area with nowhere to go. He said: "Rest in peace the Osborne View, and welcome to dead Hill Head. That's it now, there is nothing here. This was a major player in the area, they tried to save the Haven centre and were not very successful. This was the last man standing, the last queen standing I should say."

Steve Beckett, 63, from Hill Head came down to see the scene after hearing about the fire on social media and from his neighbours who, like him, frequented the pub. He said: "We are going to miss it. We had The Haven, which shut down recently, so to lose a second local amenity is a bit of a tragedy really. I hope they manage to rebuild it as a pub."

There were four properties adjacent to the pub which were also evacuated. Councillors were on the scene to help with any relocation but the residents were able to source their own alternative accommodation for the day. Conservative councillors for Hill Head, Cllr Steve Duggan and Cllr Kay Mandy, where at the scene in the morning to speak to residents and survey the scene.

Cllr Duggan said: "I saw pictures of it alight first thing this morning on Facebook, and as soon as I could I came down and picked up Cllr Mandy so we could make sure everyone was ok. Its a very big shock, personally, I have been going in their for the last 30 years, I had my wedding reception there. It’s such a big loss for the community because it's a good community space and its very popular, especially during the summer."

Despite the fire now being out, fire crews remain on the scene to dampen any potential hotspots with the gas board ensuring the gas is isolated. Hampshire & Isle of Wight Fire & Rescue, Incident Commander Jim Clarke said: “We are currently using six fire engines, the aerial ladder and jets to dampen down hotspots. We anticipate an emergency service presence for a large portion of the day and we’re liaising with local residents about safety precautions such as keeping doors and windows closed whilst the incident is ongoing. There is sadly a significant amount of damage to the building. Our empathy is with the owners, staff and local residents as we know The Osborne View is an asset to the community.”

For the full reaction from residents, as well as further footage of fire crews working on The Osborne View fire, please watch the video embedded in this article.