TRADERS in Bacup say the spirit of Christmas has been destroyed after arsonists torched the town's nativity crib.

The attack on Saturday, at around 2.30am, sparked a huge blaze outside the Conservative Club.

Firefighters from Bacup rushed to the scene within minutes of the alert to control the fire.

Carmel Coaker, owner of Bacup News in St James Street, was taking delivery of the morning papers when she spotted the flames. She said: "The people who did this are just the lowest of the low. They are just scum who have no respect for the meaning of Christmas.

"It was so sad to watch. All I could hear was the statues of Joseph and Mary cracking with the heat of the fire, it was absolutely awful.

"This has taken away the spirit of Christmas. It's supposed to be a joyful and peaceful time. The majority of people in Bacup are working hard to make it a better place to live - and then something terrible like this happens."

The crib was due to be blessed by the Rev Alistair Stewart followed by a torchlight procession from St James' Square as part of the town's Victorian Fair.

Mrs Coaker said: "Everybody worked so hard to ensure the event was a success so we ensured that the procession went ahead and held the carol service around what was left of the crib."

Police said they were examining town centre CCTV footage.

And Mrs Coaker is now hoping to start a fund to replace the crib in time for next year's celebrations.