FIREFIGHTERS say it was lucky no-one was harmed after a bin shed attached to a house caught fire.
Two trucks from Southsea fire station were called out to the dramatic incident in Shearer Road, Buckland, Portsmouth at 2.20pm yesterday.
Two witnesses told the crew of eight firefighters they had seen some youths hanging around the shed before it went up in flames.
A hose reel, jet and breathing apparatus was used to tackle the fire and stop it spreading to the house and two flats above.
The bin shed was badly damaged and arrangements will now have to be made to knock it down.
A cat sleeping in the shed at the time ran away afterwards.
The RSPCA has been told about the animal’s escape.
Crew manager Adam Cooper said: ‘Flammable materials were being stored in the shed.
‘According to two witnesses, there were children hanging around it and then there was a fire.
‘Therefore we are treating this as a suspicious incident because no other signs show the fire had started any other way. There was substantial damage to the shed and the remains will have to be taken down. It was lucky no-one was hurt as the fire could have got through the double-glazed windows in the flats above, which were occupied when the fire started. Double-glazed windows are more likely to melt when exposed to heat.’
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