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Homes are arson target

Eve Dugdale
12/11/2007

ARSONISTS have targeted homes in Denton.

Firefighters say the consequences could have been fatal after wheelie bins were pushed against properties in the Town Lane area and set alight in the middle of the night.

They are advising residents to be extra vigilant with the storage of bins.

Watch manager Mark Threader said his crew were called to a house on Town Lane at 3.30am on Sunday where a bin had been pushed against a front door and set alight.

“As we were leaving that incident we saw another one 10 houses down. The wheelie bin had been pushed against the back door of the house. The occupants of the second one didn’t realise it was on fire,” said Mr Threader.

“I’d advise people not to put their bins out the night before (emptying day) and keep them away from buildings and roads - if they’re not there, they can’t be fired. I realise it doesn’t work for everybody - people who are older or less mobile will have difficulty but if people can just try their best to keep bins away from roads it would really help,” said Mr Threader.

Anyone with information about the fires can phone police on 872 5050 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

To arrange for the fire service to come to your house and give you a free fire risk assessment where they can advise you of the best place to store your bins among other things, call into your local station or phone 0800 555 815.

A DOG died in a house fire in Ashton on Friday.  The Staffordshire bull terrier was in a house on Birch Street, Ashton at 4.30pm when the fire started.

The owner had left food unattended on the cooker and gone out.  A crew from Ashton fire station spent two hours tackling the flames.

Severe damage was caused because the doors in the house were left open and the smoke and flames had spread.