FIREFIGHTERS were called to tackle a fire in Daresbury Hall on Daresbury Lane on Saturday afternoon.

Eight fire engines rushed to the scene of the blaze at around 4.45pm.

The structure of the building was unsafe so fire crews used hydraulic platforms to tackle the flames from outside the building.

Firefighters used main water jets to fight the fire and were fighting the flames until 10pm on Saturday night.

Two fire crews stayed on the scene overnight to make sure the fire did not catch hold of the building again.

Daresbury Lane was closed to traffic in both directions but the road has since reopened.

The stately home was empty at the time of the blaze but has recently been used as a venue for a company offering zombie experience events.

It was also the site of a cannabis farm and police discovered £750,000 worth of drugs being grown at the mansion in April 2015.

Firefighters will remain on the scene all weekend and fortunately no casualties have been reported.

An investigation has been launched by Cheshire Fire into the cause of the blaze and anyone with information should call police on 101.