Bristol sports centre fire treated as arson, police say

Enquiries are ongoing, but police are treating the incident as arson

A large fire at a former sports centre is being treated as arson, police say.

Emergency services were called to Whitchurch Sports Centre in Bristol, at about 09:50 BST on Wednesday when the fire broke out.

A number of roads were closed and around 50 nearby households in Paddock Garden were evacuated as a precaution. No one was hurt in the fire.

An ongoing investigation, which started on Thursday, has found the fire was started deliberately.

A police spokesperson said: "Following a visit from our crime scene investigators and Avon Fire and Rescue Service's investigators this morning, the building has been deemed unsafe to enter, however it is believed it was started deliberately and we are treating it as an arson investigation."

Crews were at the scene until 22:00 BST on Wednesday and various checks were carried out throughout the night.

South Bristol neighbourhood policing inspector Chris Starr said: "We understand this has been an stressful time for local residents and we would like to ensure everyone that we will conduct a thorough investigation.

"We would like to thank the public for their support and understanding while we carry out enquiries and to those who were evacuated from their homes.

"Our officers will now be working with the fire investigators, our CID and the council to carry out CCTV trawls and house-to-house enquiries."

He added: "We are aware of an increase in calls relating to antisocial behaviour around the site in recent weeks.

"At this stage it is far too early to speculate whether any of these previous incidents are linked to the fire but we will keep an open mind while investigations work is ongoing."

Officers are keen to speak with anyone who saw or heard anything suspicious from 09:30 on Wednesday, or if anyone has any dashcam, doorbell or CCTV footage around the sports centre site.