Wrexham,North Wales - Major blitz on Wrexham's arson 'problem' after latest deliberate inferno

Police, fire chiefs and Crimestoppers joining forces to try to tackle problem fires in town, which have blighted certain areas for years

A major new operation has been launched to try to tackle the problem of arsons in Wrexham .

The announcement of the new dedicated effort - which will involve police , fire and the Crimestoppers charity - comes after a spate of deliberate fires in the Caia Park area of the town, and the day after a huge hay bale inferno that is believed to have been started on purpose .

Last year, fire crews from Wrexham deal with 55 arson attacks on the Caia Park estate, and the council recognises deliberate fires as a “recurring problem” in the town.

Crimestoppers - which lets people ring to leave anonymous information that can help police track down criminals - is working on a campaign to try to tackle what it called the “senseless crime”.

1,200 hay bales go up in flames in Wrexham inferno

Gary Murray, North Wales Regional Manager for Crimestoppers, said: “What disappoints me most is this senseless crime is pulling police away from more serious crimes and putting our fire service at needless risk.

“I’d ask local people to get in touch with Crimestoppers, completely anonymously, and give us the information that can bring those responsible for this crime to justice. With the public’s help we can make Wrexham a safer place to live and work.”

Arsonists have targeted cars repeatedly on Caia Park in Wrexham

Each year over 1000 pieces of important information on crime in North Wales are given to Crimestoppers totally anonymously and the charity has seen a significant increase in information from the public over the last six months.

A council report looking into the problem found that “arson has been a recurring problem in Wrexham for a number of years. There is a significantly higher level of deliberate fires in the county compared to the rest of North Wales over the past five years.”

'Suspicious' fire in Wrexham under investigation

Stuart Millington, Senior Fire Safety Manager for North Wales Fire and Rescue Service , said: “Deliberate fires place tremendous pressure on the fire and rescue service’s resources, with our crews being committed to bring them under control, which in turn delays firefighters from attending life threatening incidents.

"It could be you or a member of your family that requires our assistance and we may not be able to get to you as quickly or as easily as we would like because we have to deal with a deliberate fire in the area.”

http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/major-blitz-wrexhams-arson-problem-12085881