A SUSPICIOUS fire at a semi-detached house in Burnley is being investigated by fire and police chiefs.

Alert neighbours rang 999 when they heard a bang and saw smoke coming from the next door house on Brunshaw Avenue at 11.40pm on Sunday.

When two crews of firefighters arrived, they were informed that the occupiers were not in the property and they used two pumps and four men with breathing apparatus to tackle the fire.

Watch manager Mark Woodward said the cause of the fire was deliberate, but declined to say where the fire had started or how due to ‘operation reasons.’ He said: “The bang that the neighbours heard could have been an aerosol or a window cracking. They have done well raising the alarm.

“There was extensive fire, heat and smoke damage. The fire was extinguished very quickly and we made sure everything was safe.”