$4m medieval-style dream mansion burns to the ground - PHOTO

A sprawling $4 million mansion built by an Ohio family has been gutted after a fire broke out on Friday afternoon. Homeowner Maria Decker, who had only added the finishing touches to her family's dream home last year, was on vacation when the fire broke out. Plumes of smoke and flames as high as 30ft could be seen as the fire ripped through the 22-room stone-built mansion. About 70 firefighters were called in to tackle the blaze, but the house was quickly engulfed, making it too dangerous for the crews to go inside.

It took Mrs Decker and her husband Jeff three years to build the house, which had vaulted ceilings, stone arches and a turret.

Mr Decker had gone out for lunch when the fire started. His 44-year-old wife was on vacation in Florida, and their sons were at college and school.'They're devastated at this point in time. What they've worked for and the beautiful, big house they built is no longer standing the way it was,' Fire Captain Clarence Smith told WLWT.Mrs Decker's 20-year-old son Chase, left a message on Facebook telling friends they had lost everything in the fire, but that the family's dogs had managed to survive.In a post written at 4pm, he said: 'You will soon see on the news that our home has burned down and there is nothing left of our possessions.'He added: 'Thankfully everyone is safe, including our dogs.'Because the two-storey home was set back from the road, in five acres of land, and didn't have a sprinkler system, the firefighters struggled to control it. A fire hydrant that was on the property didn't have a large enough supply of water to tackle the flames, WCPO reported.The sprawling five-bedroom home, which had an elevator, flag pole and outside pool, was built in 2006, although Mrs Decker had put photos of it nearing completion last year.As well as being the family home of Mrs Decker and her sons Chase and Austin, the house was also the site of J.R. Decker Builders Inc.The cause of the fire is under investigation. At first, it was thought to have been a blaze in a field, as neighbors called in reports of smoke. Paula Maxwell, who lives behind the Decker's property, said: 'I at first thought the woods were on fire behind my house.' She added that she could see balls of flame through the trees.Another neighbor, who was not named, told Fox 19: 'I hang out with the kids and play golf with them, [we're] actually good friends with them and it breaks my heart that they don't have a house to come back to or a place to live for a little bit.'(dailymail.co.uk)ANN.Az