FIRE chiefs have confirmed there is no hiding place for would-be arsonists after a series of high-profile prosecutions across East Lancashire for setting deliberate blazes.

The pledge comes after it emerged that the number of arson attacks reported across the county is generally on the rise, from 2015 to 2016.

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Jail terms totalling more than 12 years have been imposed on five men following three separate inquiries spearheaded by specialist investigators from Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service.

In one case three Blackburn men - Higher Audley Street residents Nauman Ahmed, 24, Mohammed Zaib, 26 and Mazhar Iqbal, 35 - were all jailed for setting a car alight in Leamington Road.

CCTV footage showed the trio arriving on the scene, pouring petrol over the vehicle, then torching it. A petrol bomb was also thrown at a nearby house, in what is believed to have been an honour-based attack, fire authority members were told.

Ahmed and Zaib were jailed for two years and Iqbal for 10 months, with all three given five-year restraining orders.

Another arson attack involving a Blackburn resident, in similar circumstances, resulted in a four-and-a-half year prison sentence.

Mohammed Patel was captured on CCTV pouring a flammable substance over a neighbour’s car in Linden Avenue, sparking a blaze which spread to a nearby house.

Earlier this year fire safety officers were also involved in another arson case in East Lancashire, which saw Burnley resident Edward Trickett jailed for eight years, later reduced to six-and-a-half years on appeal, after he pushed a petrol-soaked rag through the letterbox of a former friend in Cardinal Street.

Before the attack, the victim had been provided with extra smoke detectors and a fireproof letterbox bag by the service, having previously been the subject of an arson-related incident.

Trickett, 32, pleaded guilty to arson being reckless as to whether life was endangered before being dealt with at Burnley Crown Court.

Recent official figures show the number of anti-social fires across Lancashire, up to April, rose to 2,053 from 1,825 over the course of a year, though the number of deliberate house blazes dropped from 144 to 113. The total number of fires at non-domestic properties increased from 133 to 157.

A Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service spokesman said: “These fires could have had tragic consequences and it was fortunate that nobody was hurt.

“It’s deplorable that these people would not only put themselves at risk but other people in the local community.

“Once a fire engine is at an incident, response times for other incidents in the same area will be increased which does put lives at risk.

“These prosecutions highlight the excellent working partnership between Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service and Lancashire Constabulary. Yet again, the two organisations have worked well together under the umbrella of the Arson Detective scheme.”