YORK FIREBUG NO MATCH FOR THE BLOG

On Friday 2 December 2016, at approximately 12.50 a.m., while my wife and I were sleeping, somebody deliberately set a fire at the bottom of our garden. 

Luckily, neighbours across the road in Macartney Street were alerted to the incident by their dogs.  They stretched their garden hose across the street and began putting out the flames.  Before long, the volunteer fire brigade arrived and helped to extinguish the fire. 

Thanks to their efforts and those of my kind and caring neighbours, a major disaster was averted—not only for us, but also for residents of nearby and adjoining properties.

The fire was not an accident or an instance of spontaneous combustion.  It was deliberately lit.

We know this because somebody was observed running from the scene into George Street.  A car was then heard being driven away at speed.

This is not the first such incident at our property.    Three weeks ago, also a while after midnight, somebody set fire to garden rubbish stacked up for collection against our main gate in Harriott Street.   That fire, too, was put out by our local firies who I’m told reported the incident to police. 

 

Remains of the first fire, 3 weeks after the event (click to enlarge)

On that occasion, we assumed the blaze was accidental, so didn’t follow up with our own report.  The police must have come to the same conclusion, because they didn’t contact us.

The second incident has changed my mind about the first.  I now believe that both fires were lit deliberately, possibly—in my view, very probably—in retaliation for articles or comments that have appeared on this blog.

Remains of Friday's fire, facing Harriott Street (click to enlarge)

Remains of Friday's fire, facing Macartney Street (click to enlarge)

As it happened, neither my wife nor I witnessed either incident.  In both cases, we learned what had happened from neighbours several hours after the fires had occurred.

I’m not pointing the finger at anyone in particular, but it does seem odd to me that more than once, within days of certain issues coming up on the blog, I’ve been subjected to attempts at intimidation. 

Remember that knuckle-dragging bully Animal Crackers and his threats to poison my dogs?  (I now have reason to believe that Mr. Crackers was not what he seemed, but an educated person of means posing very successfully as a half-wit.)

I suppose there might be a handful of folk in York who disagree enough with opinions expressed on the blog to regard the use of force, or threats of force, to shut me up as fully justified. 

But lighting fires?  Is anyone in York sufficiently stupid, drunk or drug-befuddled to take revenge in such a way as to threaten the lives and property not only of a person they dislike, but of dozens, perhaps hundreds, of others as well?

‘Animal Crackers’ was bad enough.  Now, it seems, we have ‘Fire Crackers’ too, an even more daunting proposition.

I have reported the latest incident to local police, who have kindly offered to increase nocturnal surveillance of the area in which our property is located.   In addition, we shall lose no time in installing concealed CCTV throughout the property.

So, Mr. Fire Crackers, if you’re feeling the urge to star in a home movie, be my guest—and later, a guest of the Governor, because setting unauthorised fires on somebody’s property is a serious offence that carries a fair bit of prison time.

I won’t pretend that I’m not frightened and distressed as well as angered by what you’ve done.  Of course I am.  Only a complete fool wouldn’t be. 

But your spectacularly dangerous and stupid antics won’t stop me writing for and publishing comments on this blog.