Looking back: Fire at Sandhill Park, Bishop's Lydeard, in 2011

More than 50 firefighters tackled the blaze at the Grade II Listed Sandhill Park in Bishops Lydeard.

No-one was injured in the fire, but firefighters took almost 36 hours to get the blaze under control.

Parish councillor Mike Rigby said at the time: “People in the village are very upset that a big part of our history has been damaged.

“The external parts of the building are largely intact, so I hope this focuses minds on finding some use for it.”

Mr Rigby claimed the site – a former hospital and fire engine museum – was sometimes left insecure and said more could have been done to ensure that the building was safe.

He said: “I’ve been saying this is going to happen for more than a decade.”

Four men aged between 19 and 23 were jailed for between 12 and 27 months, when they pleaded guilty to arson at Taunton Crown Court.

Eyewitnesses described the horrific scene in 2011.

Lucy Robertshaw, 16, who lived on the Lethbridge Park estate, which overlooks the mansion said: “I could see the flames over the roof and then it started to collapse inwards.

“It seemed easier for the firemen to control it when that happened. It was shocking – one day it’s fine and the next it’s in flames.”

Jackie Louw, who also lives on the estate, said: “I woke up at 3.30am and the fire was full-blown. There was an orange glow and there were firemen everywhere.”

Ross Campbell, who lived in nearby Ash Priors, was woken by the flames at about 5am.

He said: “By 6.30am the flames were leaping out through the roof. I could hear slates cracking and timbers crashing down.

“The firemen were way above the roofline, engulfed in thick, acrid smoke. They were doing a fantastic job.”

The mansion house was built in the early 18th Century and was home to the Lethbridge family from 1767 until 1913. It served as a prisoner-of-war camp for German and Austrian officers during the First World War and was bought by Somerset County Council in 1920 for use as a home for disabled children.

The NHS later bought the historic mansion, when it reopened as a psychiatric hospital, until its sale in 1991.

It served briefly as a fire museum before being boarded up and in recent years has attracted the attention of ghost hunters, who claim the site is haunted. Now, Sandhill Park is being restored and transformed into luxury properties.