Arson attack turns cars into fireballs
Residents’ cars left wrecked
Residents of a quiet Rutherglen street have spoken of their disbelief after cars were set alight in a targeted, early morning attack.
Vehicle owners in Rosslyn Avenue told the Reformer they were devastated when their cars had been deliberately set upon by arsonists.
Three cars were targeted and a further five were damaged. Residents looked on in horror after being wakened by explosions.
A red Skoda Fabio was badly burnt out from the inside to leave its seats and interior melted black while a sports car was fully engulfed in flames to leave nothing but the carcass of the vehicle.
The owner of a blue Toyota Avensis told the Reformer she didn’t think she would be able to claim back on the damage from her insurance company.
She said: “I know my car is not a lot of money but I’ll get nothing back on it so it’s very frustrating.
“I don’t know much about what happened. The neighbours tried to phone me but I slept right through it.
“The CID said they’d be in touch.”
One navy coloured Renault Clio and white van had caught fire while the passenger side of a black Mercedes SLK was singed and part of the brake light was melted.
A neighbour, who lives on the opposite side of the road from where the cars were ablaze, watched emergency services rush to the scene.
He said: “I only heard the bangs, woke up and saw the fire.
“We heard the bangs and the windows smash and came out just a couple of minutes before the fire engines got here.”
Another added: “We heard several explosions. One of them even shook the house.
“The place was absolutely ablaze. It is very dangerous and the police said it was targeted.
“Luckily none of those cars are mine but that’s where I’d usually park.”
A police spokesman confirmed they had received a report of the fires at 1.15am on Wednesday, June 1 and enquiries were continuing.
He added: “The fires were extinguished by Scottish Fire and Rescue who confirmed the vehicles had been deliberately set on fire.
“Thankfully no persons were injured as a result of this incident although five other nearby vehicles were also extensively damaged.
“Police are investigating this as an act of wilful fireraising and enquiries are on-going. Any member of the public with information about this incident is asked to contact police immediately.”