Arsonists set fire to The Jolly Colliers in Potters Green

[dutchman]

Arsonists are believed to be responsible for a fire which swept through a disused Coventry pub this afternoon.



Fire crews were called out at 12:45pm to The Jolly Colliers, in Woodway Lane, Potters Green, after a member of the public dialled 999 when they saw smoke pouring out of the building.

Watch Commander Tim Parsons, from Foleshill fire station, described it as a "severe fire" in the roof space of the building, which closed as a pub some time ago.

The severity of the fire meant that three fire engines and one brigade response vehicle were called to the scene, with some 20 firefighters tackling it at its height. Police also attended the scene.

Mr Parsons said: “Witnesses saw people running away from the building, so the incident is being treated as arson at the moment.

“Nobody was in the pub, but it is not always clear that a building is empty - there may be children or vagrants inside.

“For that reason, we had to do a thorough search inside the building to establish for certain that nobody was there.”

Once the flames had been extinguished, firemen stood on a hydraulic platform, spraying water at the roof tiles to make sure that there were no hot spots that could rekindle the fire.