Two teenagers are expected to be charged with arson over a Melbourne factory fire in a lurid echo of the recent Sydney mass fire
- Two teenagers are expected to be charged with arson
- Southbank store caught fire on Thursday
Two teens questioned about a downtown warehouse fire are expected to be charged with arson, police confirmed.
A derelict building in Southbank, Melbourne, caught fire on Thursday afternoon.
No one was inside or injured, however the Clarendon Street facility sustained significant damage.
The following day, a 13-year-old boy from Little River and a 15-year-old boy from Safety Beach were arrested at Southern Cross railway station. They were released pending further investigation.
Victoria Police have confirmed that detectives were expected to charge the teens with arson, as well as a spate of robberies, burglaries and attempted armed robbery in Melbourne’s CBD in recent weeks.
About 30 firefighters arrived shortly after the alert was given to deal with the blaze, which was sending plumes of “choking” smoke into the air.
Crews took around an hour to contain the fire, which engulfed two small factories near Haig Street.
Residents of Albert Park, Docklands, Melbourne, Port Melbourne, South Melbourne, South Wharf and Southbank have been warned to be on high alert.
“Smoke will be visible from nearby roads and communities,” authorities said in a statement.
‘There is currently no threat to the community, but you should continue to be informed and monitor conditions.
Two teenagers are expected to be charged with arson after an abandoned warehouse on Melbourne’s Southbank caught fire on Thursday (pictured)
Detectives were expected to charge the couple with arson, as well as a series of robberies, robberies and attempted armed robbery in Melbourne’s CBD in recent weeks.
The incident comes after boys aged 12 and 13 were questioned about a large factory fire in Sydney’s inner Surry Hills in May.
No charges have been filed in that fire, which engulfed a neighboring building as well as the former seven-story hat factory, displacing more than a hundred local residents.
It was initially feared that a number of people may have perished in the Sydney fire, and the building was known to regularly house people sleeping rough.
Anyone with information about the Southbank fire is urged to call Crime Stoppers.
