Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Terror as pushchair set on fire in close
POLICE have blasted an “astonishingly reckless” fireraiser who set a pram on fire in a Dundee close.
Fire crews and police rushed to Dura Street in Stobswell last night around 7pm after receiving reports of the fire.
Firefighters then found another fire burning in a common close.
Police today appealed for information to trace the perpetrator of the “near unthinkable” act.
A spokesman for the force said: “Police Scotland is appealing for information about an incident which happened between 6.30pm and 7.10pm on Sunday in Dura Street.
“A child’s pushchair was deliberately set on fire within a close across from the large car park.
“Fortunately, residents of the close managed to drag it outside, but not before it had caused considerable damage.
“Not only is it particularly low to destroy a child’s pushchair, but the potential danger posed to the residents of the close by this astonishingly reckless act was near unthinkable.
“If you have any information that could assist our investigation, please call 101 or speak with any police officer — our reference is CR/1634/18.”
One local resident today said the consequences of the fire could have been far worse.
He said: “I parked in the car park just opposite the Balmore Bar just after 8pm and saw the fire truck on Balmore Street.
“There was a police car on Dura Street and a police van on Harriet Street.
“The police and the fire crew were congregated outside one of the blocks of flats — someone told me there had been a fire within the close.
“It was hard to tell how bad the fire had been but for a fire to have started in a close it sounds like it could have been set intentionally which is certainly a concern.
“I would be fearful the fire could have got out of control and people could potentially have been trapped in the building.”
A spokesman for Scottish Fire and Rescue confirmed they had attended the incident and doused two blazes at the scene.