Arson suspected at Lothian bar

A fire which broke out at a bar and restaurant in Tranent destroying much of the building is now thought to have been started deliberately.

Arson dogs trained to sniff out accelerants such as petrol were used at the site and according to a spokesperson for Lothian and Borders fire service has yielded “positive results.”

The fire broke out on Tuesday at around 5am and it took over 30 firefighters many hours to control the fire.

Tranent watch manager, Joe Stockman said “There was an extremely intense heat within the building and it was very smoke logged when we arrived.  We had to spend time checking for ‘hot spots’ within the building using breathing apparatus as we needed to be 100% sure that other fires hadn’t broken out in other parts of the property.”

Much of the damage was to the bar, restaurant and function rooms but luckily no one was in the property at the time of the fire and there were no casualties reported.

An investigation is being carried out by Lothian and Borders police. A police spokesperson said “Enquiries carried out by Lothian and Borders fire and rescue service indicate this fire had been started deliberately and we are now investigating to find those responsible.”