Widespread Deliberate Fires Reported In West Sussex

Friday, 11 December 2020 11:45

By John Warburton @Warblefly

Deliberately-started blazes in West Sussex are increasing

Police and firefighters in West Sussex said they've been tackling increasing numbers of deliberately started fires since October.

Staff with the county's fire and rescue service reported at least 15 fires that weren't accidents, across public places in Chichester, Bognor and Littlehampton.

They said these often involved public lavatories, bins or skips.

In a single day, October 20, firefighters attended flames five times in conveniences in Bognor and Chichester.

Over the last month, the facilities at Avisford Park were set on fire five times.

Emergency services also reported blazes involving a bus stop on Bilsham Road in Yapton on October 30, and deliberate fires involving wheelie bins and skips in East Preston, Bognor Regis and Littlehampton.

Nicki Peddle is WSFRS’s Head of Prevention.

She said:

“It is concerning to see a rise in the number of deliberate fires, especially in such a short space of time and involving public facilities.

“What is particularly concerning is that we know fireworks were used in at least one of these deliberate fires, and as we move into the New Year period I would urge everyone to consider the risks of messing around with fireworks.

“It might seem like harmless fun at the time, but a deliberately started fire can very easily get out of control and become a much larger fire.

“On some occasions, we were not called to attend these fires at the time, which means there was the potential for the fire to have burned for longer and caused further damage.

“I would urge members of the public to call 999 even if they think the fire is already out, so that we are aware of the incident and able to spot any trends that may be emerging.”

Chief Inspector Jon Carter, Police District Commander for Arun and Chichester, said:

“We work closely with the fire and rescue service and local authorities to seek to prevent such incidents, and ask local people to remain alert and report any suspicious activity to us on 999.

"Officers are deployed to deal with issues such as these in the area. Dispersal powers have and will continue to be used where proportionate, and where we identify offenders we will use the whole range of powers available to protect the community."

Several ways are available to report concerns about behaviour that could lead to the risk of starting a fire.

West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service's "Firewise" team welcomes calls on 0330 222 515, or emails to firewise@westsussex.gov.uk.