FIREFIGHTERS battled for two hours to bring a blaze under control after arsonists set fire to 12 caravans yards away from gas cylinders.

Crews from Accrington and Oswaldtwistle were called to caravan dismantlers, Copy Clough Caravans, off Dill Hall Lane, Church, at around 1.30am after a passer-by saw one of the caravans ablaze.

Crews used water from the nearby canal and fought for two hours to bring the blaze under control. All the caravans were destroyed.

The fire is being treated as suspicious and police were also at the scene.

Accrington Station Officer Neil Ashworth said: "We were alerted to the fire by a passer-by who noticed one caravan on fire.

"When we arrived on scene there were several caravans ablaze near liquid petrol gas cylinders so we could not tackle the fire from too close because of the potential danger.

"Any one of them could have exploded at any time."

Nobody from Copy Clough Caravans was available for comment.