Working Men’s Club destroyed in arson attack
Staffordshire firefighters were called to a huge fire at a disused working men’s club on the evening of 18th June.
Crews spent around 4 hours tackling the fire at the Old Mills Working Men’s Club and Institute in Blurton at about 8.40pm.
Station Manager Rob Barber confirmed that arson is suspected. The building was so badly damaged that it will now need to be demolished.
Mr Barber said: “We have carried out our investigations and have gathered enough evidence to support a conclusion that this fire was started deliberately. We will do everything in our power to help Staffordshire Police bring those responsible to justice – arson is a serious crime, it endangers many lives and ties up emergency services for hours.”
There were no casualties reported in the incident. An investigation into the cause of the fire is now underway.
Councillor appeals for sprinklers in all new homes after Derby fire deaths
Martyn Ford from Derbyshire County Council has called for sprinklers to be installed in all new homes after 6 children died in a house fire in Derby last week.
Mr Ford said: “Sadly it has taken another devastating house fire, claiming six young lives, to yet again highlight the urgent need for domestic sprinklers to be installed in all new-build properties. I realise that we are too late in this instance, lives have been lost and others changed for ever, but it needn’t be like this. As a former member of Derbyshire Fire Authority, I urge all readers to view the Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service website, follow the links to domestic sprinklers and view the incredibly impressive video on just how quickly and effectively a fire in a home is extinguished.
“There is also a link to an e-petition that needs just 100,000 signatures to trigger a debate in Parliament. The Welsh Assembly has already passed legislation requiring sprinklers to be installed — the rest of the politicians in the UK need to start to act very quickly now to catch up and get effective legislation on the statute that empowers local planning authorities to condition sprinklers on every domestic property application. It costs a small amount of money to have a firefighter in every room. We must take action now.”
If you would like to sign the petition to get this issue discussed in parliament all you need to do is click here.
Three arrested for Northampton arson attacks
Police have arrested three people in connection with suspected arson attacks carried out on two homes in Northampton.
The incidents happened in the space of a few hours and were in the same area.
A spokesperson for Northamptonshire Police said: “Officers have today arrested three men in connection with this week’s arson attacks in Drywell Court, east Northampton. The men, two local and one from out of the county, are currently being held in custody for questioning.”
The second fire, at the single storey home of an elderly disabled woman caused significant damage to the property which has been left structurally unsafe. Thankfully the woman managed to escape with only minor injuries.
A neighbour who witnessed the incident said: “I was woken up by the smoke, it was frightening and I quickly got my children up and out of the house. I turned and saw flames coming out of next door’s home, I couldn’t believe it. It is a terrible thing to do but the main thing is that everyone is okay.”
A woman living in the house that was targeted first said: “I still can’t really understand what’s happened, we saw the explosion and just got out. My daughter was shouting, it could have been her bedroom. I can’t believe they returned and did another house. Another neighbour had a brick through their window. Who could do this? Thank God everyone is okay.”
Detective Inspector Ally White from Northampton CID said: “These are very serious incidents and we asking anyone with information about these incidents, who we have not yet spoken with, to come forward. Thankfully no-one was hurt as a result but one of the properties sustained severe structural damage. We are confident that these incidents can be isolated and that there is no wider risk to the community. But we will be putting on extra community patrols, day and night, to reassure residents in the area. We would ask people living in the vicinity of these incidents to report any suspicious activity to us.”
The investigation into how the fire started is being carried out.
Cars destroyed in train station arson attack
Fire crews in Newbury attended a suspected arson attack at a Railway Station in Thatcham at around 1.30 am on 8th January.
The fire was started in an Audi Estate car that was parked in the station car park, and had spread to other cars nearby including an Audi TT. Red Watch crew manager Bob Mitchell said: “It happened after the last train, there was no-one around – the cars may have been left there over the weekend.”
It took Firefighters about 45 minutes to extinguish the blaze. British Transport Police have been informed and an investigation into the exact cause of the fire will be carried out.