Teenagers could have severely damaged a 17th Century town house after dragging straw bales down the Southend, stacking them by the building and setting them alight.

The property's owner, town councillor Catharine Luck, said the fire had left the brickwork on the 1640s property blackened.

A number of witnesses saw a gang of youths dragging the two or three bales, shortly after 8pm last Friday night.

The fire brigade was called almost immediately by one of Ms Luck's concerned neighbours.

Ms Luck was playing at Ledbury Tennis Club when she received a call on her mobile phone to say that her house was in danger.

She drove back immediately, to find a fire crew from Ledbury already in attendance and using a hose reel jet on the blazing bales.

The 999 call was received at 8.20pm and the flames were out twenty minutes later. Firefighters removed the remains of the smouldering bales to open ground nearby.

Ms Luck said: "Apparently it was a complete inferno at one point. The firefighters came very quickly, I must say, and were very good. But the house was full of smoke. I suffer from asthma and on Friday night, I couldn't sleep a wink."

Although several witnesses saw the youths, the light was not good enough for a very clear description, except that they were aged between 13 and 15. The police have been informed.