Brian Hall inspects the damage done to his garden fence Picture Ref: 77255-89GRANDAD Brian Hall had the fright of his life when he woke up from an afternoon snooze and found half his back garden ablaze.

Someone had sneaked around the back of his Lower Stratton home and set fire to a pile of branches.

The flames engulfed trees and fencing panels at the back of his garden and spread to his shed.

Now firefighters have issued a stern warning about the dangers of starting fires.

Mr Hall a 66-year-old retired lorry driver is worried the firebugs could strike again elsewhere.

"It could be more serious next time. Someone could get killed or be seriously injured," he said.

The arsonists sneaked down an alleyway to get into the rear garden of Mr Hall's terraced council home in Ruskin Avenue.

"I just couldn't believe it. The flames were shooting 30ft up the trees," he said. The fence was burning and the roof of the shed was on fire.

"It was a hot day so everything was very dry." Two fire crews spent half an hour bringing the flames under control.

Once they had finished, a forensic officer was called in to search for clues which could help identify the arsonists.

Mr Hall's neighbour, mother-of-three Sharon Lane, was horrified by the attack on Sunday afternoon.

"I was worried the flames would spread along the fence and reach the houses," said the 38-year-old.

"Just imagine if it had happened in the middle of the night."

As the flames crept to within a foot of her shed which contained her children's bikes neighbours rushed to help. A group of lads managed to drag the bikes to safety and the fire brigade arrived in time to save her shed. "I'm really grateful to those lads. I couldn't have afforded to replace the bikes," said Ms Lane.

Anyone with information about the fire which started at 5pm should call the police on 01793 528111.

Gary Heap, the community safety manager at Wiltshire Fire Brigade, said the dangers of starting fires was obvious, even to children.

"Not only does fire lead to the damage of property and financial loss, but there is also the risk of people being seriously injured or worse," he said. "This applies not only to those starting the fire but also to persons in areas to which a fire may spread.

"This risk is significantly increased at times of particularly dry conditions like those we are experiencing at present."

Tamash Lal