Arsonists blamed for string of attacks

9:15am today Thursday 13th July 2006

Fire and police investigators are probing a string of suspicious blazes in Bradford which have cost hundreds of thousands of pounds in two days.

An estimated quarter of a million pounds' damage was caused in a fire at a haulage yard which is believed to have been started deliberately.

The blaze began at about 8.30pm on Tuesday in a wagon with a trailer containing wool, which was parked in the yard of Bower Green Warehousing in Dryden Street, Bradford.

Flames spread to another wagon and trailer and two cars in the compound. Offices were smoke-logged and windows blown out during the incident.

Twenty firefighters from Bradford, Odsal and Idle were at the scene for almost four hours.

Alan Pattison, a director of the company, said the fire had been started by something being thrown over the wall, possibly a petrol bomb.

He said: "There has probably been a quarter of a million pounds' damage caused. The wagons have been destroyed. We are insured but in the short term we will have to hire vehicles until everything is sorted out.

"It's frustrating. You just don't need this sort of thing in business. The people who did it are scum."

Watch Manager John Blythe, of Bradford fire station, said a couple of youths had been sighted in the area and police were studying CCTV footage from the yard.

Bradford firefighters spent two hours dealing with an arson attack earlier in the evening at the former Byron Street nursery school, off Barkerend Road.

The building, which was due to be demolished, was gutted after it was deliberately set alight.

Watch Manager Blythe said the fire had burned very quickly and given off a lot of smoke, but they had been able to bring it under control.

Crews had tackled another suspicious fire the previous evening in Fagley Road, Fagley, when a domestic garage was set alight. The garage was gutted and a car inside was wrecked.

And fire crews from Bingley spent four hours tackling an arson attack in a wood.

Pine trees were scorched after a pile of felled branches were set on fire in Hollin Wood, off Altar Lane.

An area of bracken, measuring 30 by 40 square metres was destroyed in the blaze on Tuesday afternoon.

Bingley station crew manager Ian Jackson said: "There had been some felling going on. Someone had piled the trees up against other trees and deliberately set fire to it and the fire spread."

Farmer Paul Patchett, who owns the wood, said it was under a woodland improvement scheme.

Mr Patchett, 60, of Ravenroyd Farm, Bingley, said: "I am fed up. We are trying to improve the wood, which is full of wildlife, including deer. We have rebuilt surrounding walls and spent tens of thousands of pounds restoring tracks and gates.

"It has public footpaths and local people enjoy walking through it. It is extremely annoying that people feel the need to do something like this. It must be very expensive for the taxpayer when two fire tenders have to come out to deal with it."

Mr Patchett said police were now patrolling the area daily.

e-mail: steve.wright@bradford.newsquest.co.uk