ARSONISTS broke into a tyre yard and deliberately set fire to stock and containers in an early morning attack.

Fire crews were called to Thistlethwaite's Tyres and Exhausts in Burn Street, just outside the town centre, at around 3.50am on Sunday morning.

The yard and garage had been empty at the time the arsonists struck, but thankfully the fire service was alerted to the incident by a passer by.

Firefighters were on the scene for around three hours as they battled to contain the flames and stop them from spreading to the main garage area.

Martin Finch, Bolton Centre Fire Station watch manager, said: "The fire was quite large at one point during the incident then we managed to contain it.

"The crews worked well and prevented the fire from reaching and doing any damage to the building."