Suspected arsonist arrested following asylum centre fire in northern Sweden
A man has been arrested suspected of arson after a fire at a home for asylum seekers in northern Sweden.
The fire burned through one of the larger buildings at the refugee residence in Grytan outside Östersund over Tuesday night.
The blaze at the 200 square meter storage building broke out at 21:00, and emergency services workers were faced with heavy smoke when they arrived to battle it.
“We tore down a wall with a wheel loader in order to get to the fire, and were able to leave the place just before one in the morning," emergency services spokesperson Teresia Gustafsson explained.
A third of the building has been destroyed while other parts have suffered fire and smoke damage.
“It's sooty and black inside. In the daylight you can see how big the damage has been," Gustafsson noted.
No one was injured in the fire, which destroyed the home's store of bedding and winter clothing. Police arrested a 25-year-old man at the scene on suspicion of arson.
Earlier in July police in Värmland said they were investigating a fire at a home for lone refugee children that left two people injured. That followed two fires at an asylum centre near Ystad in southern Sweden which police suspect was deliberate.
READ ALSO: Swedish police probe fire at home for refugee kids
Arson attacks on Swedish asylum facilities have been common since the number of refugees coming to the country peaked in 2015.
READ ALSO: Sweden sees no let-up in attacks on asylum centres
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The fire burned through one of the larger buildings at the refugee residence in Grytan outside Östersund over Tuesday night.
The blaze at the 200 square meter storage building broke out at 21:00, and emergency services workers were faced with heavy smoke when they arrived to battle it.
“We tore down a wall with a wheel loader in order to get to the fire, and were able to leave the place just before one in the morning," emergency services spokesperson Teresia Gustafsson explained.
A third of the building has been destroyed while other parts have suffered fire and smoke damage.
“It's sooty and black inside. In the daylight you can see how big the damage has been," Gustafsson noted.
No one was injured in the fire, which destroyed the home's store of bedding and winter clothing. Police arrested a 25-year-old man at the scene on suspicion of arson.
Earlier in July police in Värmland said they were investigating a fire at a home for lone refugee children that left two people injured. That followed two fires at an asylum centre near Ystad in southern Sweden which police suspect was deliberate.
READ ALSO: Swedish police probe fire at home for refugee kids
Arson attacks on Swedish asylum facilities have been common since the number of refugees coming to the country peaked in 2015.
READ ALSO: Sweden sees no let-up in attacks on asylum centres
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