Winsford mayor slams vandals who set fire to school bus

Two men were arrested by police late last night following a spate of arson incidents across Winsford.

Rubbish bins, telegraph poles and a Cheshire West and Chester Council-owned bus were all targeted.

Now, Cllr Wayne Fletcher, the mayor of Winsford, has taken to social media to share his thoughts.

“I woke up this morning to see that bins had lit on fire, thrown across the road on the high street. Community buses had been burnt out. My question is why?” he said.

“Why would you do this? Why would you burn out community buses that help ferry elderly and disabled people to and from places?

“There is no need for it, what’s the point? Why?”

He added: “This is from the mayor, asking you why are you doing this?

“Let's open a dialogue. I obviously condemn these actions but I need to know why, so we can do something about it, so we can fix what is happening, so we can make Winsford a good place.

“Come on, tell me why you’re doing it. Tell me why it's happening and let's see what we can do to help you.

“I’m sorry but there was no need for it.”

Two Winsford men have been arrested (Image: Supplied)

Police were first alerted at around 5.17pm on Sunday (August 4) to reports that two men had started a fire on High Street causing a telegraph pole to catch light.

At around 9.43pm that night, officers were called by Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service following reports that a school bus had been set aflame near the Lifestyle Centre.

Then at 10.21pm, officers were informed that a number of wheelie bins and telegraph poles had been set on fire on Leyland Walk, Glebe Green, and Ford Road.

A further small fire was reported at 12.27am in the area of Mount Pleasant Drive.

Finally, officers were called to reports of criminal damage at an address on St Chads Field and two local men, aged 24 and 30, were arrested on suspicion of arson.

Detective Sergeant Thomas Philpotts said: “I would like to reassure members of the community that these incidents are believed to be isolated and unrelated to the ongoing disorder across the country.

“As a result of the work of quick-thinking local officers, we have been able to identify two suspects in relation to the incidents and they are currently being held in custody.

“Their behaviour was not only extremely dangerous and completely unacceptable, but it will also cost taxpayers a considerable sum of money with damage repairs.

“Thankfully, no one was injured as a result of these fires, but these men showed no regard for the safety of the local community or the owners of the property they set aflame.”

He added: “We are treating these incidents incredibly seriously and enquiries are ongoing.

“As part of our investigation, we want to speak to anyone who was in the area and saw anything suspicious.

“The same goes for anyone with any CCTV or dashcam footage which may aid the investigation.”