Guests evacuated after major fire breaks out at luxury Galgorm Resort hotel

Hundreds of guests were evacuated from the Galgorm Resort and Spa near Ballymena after a fire broke out just after 9am.

It is believed to have been caused by an electrical fault.

A hotel statement said: “As you may be aware we had to perform an evacuation at the resort this morning due to an electrical fire.

“We are not back in the resort and working hard to get all of our systems back up and running.”

There are no reports of any injuries.

The 122-bedroom hotel is a popular wedding venue and has recently opened a multimillion pound extension.

The fire broke out in the roof space of the hotel’s main auditorium but was quickly brought under control.

Damage has been caused to a room measuring about 80ft by 30ft, with some smoke damage elsewhere.

Alan O’Neill, Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service group commander, said crews would remain at the scene for some time.

“We had six fire fighting appliances, an aerial appliance and a command vehicle - in total we had 47 people there.

“We will remain there for the next number of hours.

“We are working with the hotel to get them back up and running as normal.”