Moment family's roof collapses as newbuild home is destroyed by 'solar panel fire' - just weeks after similar inferno

By JOSHUA HAINING, NEWS REPORTER Published: 19:55, 8 July 2026 | Updated: 19:55, 8 July 2026 A family has told of the moment they watched on in horror as their newbuild home went up in flames in a suspected solar panel fire.  Tammi Atherton, 54, had been parked up in the lounge with Wimbledon on the telly and was about to take a shower upstairs on July 4 when her fire alarm went off. She had been with her son Ben, 21, and quickly checked the house in Weston-Super-Mare for signs of smoke but couldn't find anything awry. Moments later, a neighbour started banging on the door, telling them to get out because their roof was on ablaze. Without shoes on their feet, the mother and son rushed outside with their beloved dog Oakley at around 12.45pm to see their roof engulfed in flames. Firefighters arrived within minutes, but the blaze raged on for four hours, with eight fire crews and four police cars called to the scene.  Daughter Molly was in the garden of her Bristol home with her father when her brother called.  She told the Daily Mail: 'I was at home with my partner and my dad had popped round. We were all sat in the garden and I got a phone call off my brother who told me the house was on fire.  Firefighters from eight crews battled the blaze after it destroyed the newbuild's roof on July 4 The blaze, which raged on for four hours, was suspected to be caused by solar panel's fitted on the roof Tammi Atherton, 54, pictured with her son Ben, 21, were both inside the home as the fire broke out The 24-year-old, along with her partner and father, drove more than an hour to the house which was burning when they arrived. Video footage captured of the blaze shows neighbours gathered outside the property watching the flames tearing through the roof after it collapsed. Pictures shared of the fire show plumes of thick grey smoke billowing down the street lined with newbuild properties. Molly recalled finding her brother stood outside watching everything the family owned get destroyed by the fire. 'We came round the corner and saw my brother just watching his house and belongings go up in flames,' she said. 'It was devastating. You never think it's going to be you, then you get a phone call and it's your own family member telling you there's a fire.' She said the fire service suspected that the solar panels fitted on the roof caused the blaze to erupt. The newbuild was located on an estate built two years ago by housing association, Curo Group, who Molly criticised for their response to the incident. She said: 'Most of their properties have solar panels and Curo were not very helpful. They essentially said because my mum owns the house they can't help.' The mother and son rushed out of the burning house with their black labrador Oakley Plumes of smoke seen billowing down the street which is lined with newbuild properties The roof collapsed and was completely destroyed in the fire, leaving the property completely uninhabitable Curo Group has now apologised to Tammi and confirmed that two investigations into the fire have been launched. The company has also told every Curo-built household on the estate to turn off their solar panels as a precaution. Unfortunately, family have not been allowed to return to the home which has been declared structurally unsafe.  Molly said the emergency services were 'amazing and so supportive' throughout the ordeal, returning at 6pm to check over the property. A GoFundMe has been set up to raise money for Tammi who is working on a long-term plan in the aftermath of the fire. 'We put it on thinking even if we got £200 we would be over the moon, the fact we got £1750 is mind-blowing. Words can't describe it. 'My mum is so upset, but it showed her that support is out there.'  Avon and Somerset Fire and Rescue said: 'We were called at 12.43pm on Saturday 4th July to reports of a fire on Rigger Street, Locking. 'On arrival, crews found a fire involving solar panels on a residential home. 'Firefighters safely extinguished the fire using jets. 'The cause of the fire is thought to be accidental. No injuries were reported.'  Curo Group told the Mail: 'We're grateful for the fire service's response to this roof fire and are very relieved that no one was hurt. We're supporting the family affected and our other customers - we've been in touch with all our residents here today, and of course their safety is our primary concern. 'We have started an investigation and, until more is known about the cause of the fire, we're recommending that customers turn off their solar power systems as a precaution. 'We understand the concerns that residents will have and want to reassure them there's nothing to indicate this is anything more than an isolated incident. We're continuing to manage the situation closely and ask any Curo customers in the neighbourhood who need support or advice to please get in touch.' This is not the first suspected solar panel fire to destroy a newbuild property during the summer heatwave. A set of solar panels on a £600,000 newbuild home exploded while a family was still inside in May. Ring doorbell footage captured the roof of the property in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, bursting into flames.  Neighbours described the terror of watching the family scramble to safety at about 10.30am on the Bank Holiday Monday – as the temperature had already hit 22C. Thankfully, nobody was injured in the explosion after an off-duty firefighter rescued three adults and one child from the four-bedroom detached house.  Five fire crews then arrived and worked quickly to control the blaze.