A HAMPSHIRE woman who escaped as fire ravaged her home 24 years ago has told how she watched in horror as the house which replaced it burnt to the ground.

Rachel Kalis could not believe her eyes as flames ripped through Hinchelsea House in the New Forest on Friday, destroying the luxury timber-built home that now stands there.

In 1978 Mrs Kalis had been living in exactly the same spot in the original 16th century Hinchelsea House - between Brockenhurst and Burley - when it was destroyed by fire.

Mrs Kalis, who now lives in a neighbouring cottage, raised the alarm when she saw smoke rising from trees surrounding the secluded property at around 4.30pm.

Speaking to the Daily Echo, Mrs Kalis said: "When I got to the top of the hill it was all dj vu. It's so tragic.''

Showbusiness promoter Philip McIntyre, who bought the six-bedroom chalet-style home in 1991, had flown out to Cuba on the morning of the fire.

His daughters, Hannah and Amy, who are both in their early teens, were at their mother's house in Hightown, near Ringwood at the time of the blaze.

Mrs Kalis, 57, said: "I know the house was fine at lunchtime because I went up there to give them some holly as a Christmas present. I met a man who was working on their new tennis court and he said Philip wasn't home.

"My lodger came back at about 3pm and said there's an awful lot of smoke from the woods, but I just thought it was my bonfire on the back drive.

"At about 4.30pm someone came to pick me up to collect my car from the garage and as we drove down the drive I thought it was my bonfire out of control so I called the fire brigade.

"It wasn't until I walked back up the drive that I realised there was nothing wrong with the bonfire. I rang 999 again to say it's not my bonfire it's Hinchelsea House.

"Before I made the second call I could hear the fire engines.''

Close to tears, Mrs Kalis, added: "I went up the hill towards the house and I've been through it before. I just can't believe it.

"If we'd have gone up there when my lodger first said about the smoke we would've had a much better chance of saving it. I'm really distressed and I feel very, very sorry for Philip and his family because I know what they've got to go through.''

Mrs Kalis moved into the original stately 18-bedroom Hinchelsea House, which dated from 1780, in May 1978.

In September 1978 she was in bed ill late at night when the family cat pushed open the bedroom door, alerting her and then-husband Dirk to the smell and sound of a fire downstairs.

The couple grabbed their children, then aged one, four and seven, and, with their nanny, ran from the house.

It later emerged that the fire started when workmen who were renovating the oldest part of the house dropped a cigarette under the floorboards.

Sixty-five firefighters, who rushed to Hinchelsea from all over the New Forest, were hampered in their efforts to save the building because the nearest fire hydrant was about two miles away in Brock-enhurst.

The house was so badly damaged it had to be demolished, and the current house was built in 1988.

Similarly, firefighters in eight engines, who spent more than six hours tackling Friday's blaze, were also hampered by the absence of hydrants and ended up draining the swimming pool at the back of the property to help fight the flames.

The property was completely destroyed and will probably need to be rebuilt once again.

Mr McIntyre, who is separated and promotes rock concerts and comedy acts, was told of the fire by his personal assistant on Friday night.

Divorced Mrs Kalis said: "He was doing massive renovation of the kitchen and putting decking around the outside. He was clearly very attached to the place.

"It was a lovely house and he spent a huge sum of money trying to get it the way he wanted. That's exactly what he was doing this year until this.''

Firefighters cordoned off the scene and are still investigating the cause of the blaze, which took almost eight hours to extinguish.