Police probe '˜scary' explosion in Simonside street

Officers and firefighters were called to the back of Winskell Road, Simonside, at around 7pm on Sunday.

Two wheelie bins had been attacked by arsonists, who had set them on fire.

It is thought some kind of gas canister in one caused it to explode.

Yesterday, a police cordon was in place at the scene while an investigation into the arson attack got under way.

A woman in her 20s who lives nearby said: “It was just after 7pm and we heard this almighty bang. It was so loud, it shook the house.

“It was dark outside, so hard to see anything, but you could see the bin smouldering away in the back lane. It seems like the one next to it had been blown up too.

“The police came round to ask questions and said there’d been an explosion, but we still don’t know what caused it, or what exactly had blown up.

“It was scary, there’s a lot of children in the street.”

A pensioner added: “I know there were paint tins next to that bin. I think one of the neighbours had been decorating.

“People were saying the bin had a gas canister inside and that’s why the explosion was so loud.

“A bin filled with rubbish wouldn’t normally make such a loud noise if it was set on fire, so there must have been something unusual inside it.”

Damage was caused to both wheelie bins. No one was injured.

A spokeswoman for Northumbria Police said she could not confirm a gas canister had exploded.

She said: “At 7.05pm on Sunday, police were informed two wheelie bins were on fire in Winskell Road, South Shields.

“Inquiries are ongoing to establish the cause of the fire.

“It is thought the fire was started deliberately and is being treated as arson.”

A spokesman for Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service said it was unable to comment as the incident was in the hands of the police.f it was set on fire, so there must have been something unusual inside it."