This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/northern_ireland/7013688.stm
The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Families flee burning cars terror | Families flee burning cars terror |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Vandals who set fire to cars forced families out of their homes overnight in south Belfast. | Vandals who set fire to cars forced families out of their homes overnight in south Belfast. |
| The Fire and Rescue Service was called to Jerusalem Street at about 0330 BST where four cars were burning. | The Fire and Rescue Service was called to Jerusalem Street at about 0330 BST where four cars were burning. |
| Householders were in great distress due to the heat and smoke in close proximity to their homes, according to Assistant Group Commander David Patton. | Householders were in great distress due to the heat and smoke in close proximity to their homes, according to Assistant Group Commander David Patton. |
| Police said a man in his mid-30s has been arrested and is being questioned about the incident. | |
| Mr Patton said it was fortunate that gas cylinders in the back of a nearby vehicle did not explode. | |
| He said those responsible for the fires had smashed windows and later returned to set the cars on fire. | |
| A number of families and students were led to safety. | A number of families and students were led to safety. |
| Jerusalem Street is the focus of a police investigation | |
| "This particular street is a lovely street," said Mr Patton. | "This particular street is a lovely street," said Mr Patton. |
| "There's a good mixture of young families and young students living together side by side. This was a ridiculous act by some people in our society. | "There's a good mixture of young families and young students living together side by side. This was a ridiculous act by some people in our society. |
| "They actually caused a lot of distress for all the young families as well as the students." | "They actually caused a lot of distress for all the young families as well as the students." |
| A woman whose daughter's vehicle was damaged told the BBC that her daughter rang her screaming in the middle of the night. | A woman whose daughter's vehicle was damaged told the BBC that her daughter rang her screaming in the middle of the night. |
| She said a total of 11 vehicles had been damaged. | She said a total of 11 vehicles had been damaged. |
| "The news could have been a lot worse. It's ridiculous, but it's only property it can be replaced," she said. | "The news could have been a lot worse. It's ridiculous, but it's only property it can be replaced," she said. |
| "We don't actually know how badly damaged the car is." | "We don't actually know how badly damaged the car is." |