Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Anger as shelter is hit by firebugs
A BUS shelter was burned down after being deliberately set alight by firebugs in Dundee on Thursday night.
Firefighters were called to the incident at the bus shelter on the Forfar Road, just beside Morrisons, at 7.45pm.
The fire service were inundated with calls about the blaze and one appliance was sent to the scene to put it out.
A spokesman for Scottish Fire and Rescue confirmed it was being treated as deliberate.
Local residents have reacted with disgust at the blatant act of vandalism, which has destroyed the shelter.
Former fireman and local community leader for the North East area of the city, Jim Malone, said: “It could have injured those who set fire to the shelter or to anyone else passing by.
“The materials that a bus shelter are made of are incredibly dangerous when on fire. They are carcinogenic but if they stick to you as they melt you will know all about it.
“This is also social vandalism. This bus shelter is on a main artery into town and is used by dozens of people all day every day.
“It causes massive inconvenience to them as well as costing money to remove and replace.
“There has been a spate of secondary fires in this area over the past couple of weeks, with grass and reed beds among other things set on fire.
“This is not acceptable behaviour and needs tackled and challenged.”
One local resident said: “I use this bus stop most days of the week. I just don’t see the need for this kind of behaviour. We can’t allow young people to think they can go about starting dangerous fires and get away with it.”
A Police Scotland spokesman said: “Police were made aware of a fire to a bus shelter on Afton Way, Dundee, around 7.40pm. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service attended and extinguished the fire safely and there were no injuries.
“Inquiries are ongoing into the circumstances.”