Over the weekend, it has been revealed that Avon Fire and Rescue Service had to respond to over 30 deliberate fires across Bristol and South Gloucestershire, including the targetting of a Rolls Royce facility in Filton.
A new statement issued by the fire service spoke of the "disappointing" events which saw so many fires started deliberately across the Bristol region. Areas were targetted with arson attacks with vehicles set alight in each location during the early hours of Sunday morning.
Avon and Somerset Police were also involved and received the first call at around 1.30am reporting a vehicle fire in New Road, Stoke Gifford. By 5.30am there were further reports, with up to 20 vehicles set alight in locations across Filton, Bradley Stoke, Little Stoke and Stoke Gifford.
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There are only ten fire investigation officers spread across Avon Fire and Rescue Service and their resources were stretched to deal with these fires over the weekend.
Temporary Area Manager for Risk Reduction, Steve Quinton, said: "It is so disappointing to see so many fires started deliberately in our communities, fire presents a significant risk, not only to those starting the fires and those local residents in the community but to our crews that are sent in to tackle them.
"Now more than ever we would urge people to not start a fire intentionally as it could have severe consequences. Not only is it a crime that can carry a significant sentence, but our crews would potentially be unable to get to another emergency. The Service’s resources need to be available to respond to any fires in the home and support with humanitarian aid for vulnerable people in our communities.
"We are pleading with local people to support us end arson in our communities. This is an ideal opportunity for communities to get behind us on the zero tolerance to arsonists. We all need to work together to tackle arson – it is everyone’s problem."
All fire investigation officers undergo specific training and are able to work with Crime Scene Investigators (CSI) to identify the cause and origin of deliberate fires that lead to the loss of life or significant insurance pay-outs. Those officers can be called upon at both criminal and coroner’s court to give evidence and often do.
Steve added: “Here at Avon Fire and Rescue Service we have a brilliant team of fire investigation staff that are able to identify the cause of deliberate fires and provide that information to the police for prosecution.
“Deliberate fires are not taken lightly and we invest heavily in this area of work. Our fire investigation dog, Jet, also has a nose for accelerants and will find the cause of a fire even if our officers can’t.
“For anyone thinking about starting a deliberate fire, I would warn them against it. We work with the police on a regular basis and we will help bring you to justice.”
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