A Surbiton delicatessen owner is devastated after her business was gutted by fire last Friday - just months away from the 20th anniversary of its opening.

Firefighters using breathing apparatus had to pick their way through thick smoke after breaking in to Orindi’s in Surbiton Road at 5.40pm, using thermal imaging cameras to track down the source of the blaze in the popular cafe’s kitchen.

An emotional Jayne Solovey, who first established the shop as an Italian deli in 1990, said she was extremely upset at the damage caused to her business but was working hard to get the store up and running again.

The mother of two was forced to take on the running of the business single-handed, after her husband Adriano suffered a severe brain haemorrhage in 1996, and has worked hard over the years to ensure the store’s success.

Surbiton’s blue watch manager Dave Englefield, whose team dealt with the blaze, said it was unclear how the fire had started, but added the borough’s fire investigation team had been called in to assess the situation.

He said: “The building was completely smoke logged when we got there, and there was quite severe burning to the kitchen area.

“We had to break in and find our way around the place a bit, because it was closed at the time.

“It was definitely a purely accidental fire, and it took about 10 minutes to put out - it was a job well done.”

Mr Englefield advised other shop owners to make sure any electrical appliances are switched when they leave the premises, and to ensure their fire alarm is switched on.

Miss Solovey was unable to say when the shop would be able to reopen following the fire.

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