TWO men were arrested after a spate of fires in Warrington.

The pair, aged 22 and 23, were held on suspicion of arson after blazes broke out yesterday morning.

In the first, shortly after 2am, two people were rescued from a residential flat above a shop in Lovely Lane by the fire service.

They were taken to hospital for a check-up but were not believed to be seriously injured. The shop was extensively damaged.

At 2.20am, emergency services were called to another blaze at Regency Court when a wheelie bin was set on fire and put against a house, causing it to catch fire. Residents living on either side of the property were evacuated after a gas pipe within the property was ignited.

Shortly after this blaze, two more small fires were reported in the area – one in Harrington Avenue and a further bin fire in Lovely Lane.

There were no serious injuries as a result of the incidents, and no reported casualties other than those on Lovely Lane.

IF YOU have any information, call police on 0845 458 0000, quoting incident number 77 of August 17.