THE Mayor of Alcester was in a state of shock after looking out of her bedroom window to see her car engulfed in flames, writes Helen Clarke.

The heat from the blaze, at 10.15pm last Tuesday, was so intense that it caused a window in Wendy Weatherhead's house to smash.

The mayor was in bed when she saw headlights in the road but thought it was her neighbour returning.

She then heard a thud and seconds later saw the reflection of flames on her bedroom radiator.

Mrs Weatherhead said: "It was only about 20 seconds after hearing the thud I could see flames shooting through the sunroof and the car windows exploded.

"The car is a write-off and the house guttering is a mess. It looks awful.

"We should be grateful though, because it could've been worse."

Mrs Weatherhead said her neighbours, many in their 80s, had been shaken by the fire and paid tribute to her friends in the town.

Police and fire crews say the fire was started under suspicious circumstances but a cause has not yet been established.