POLICE have launched an arson investigation following a fire which broke out in a disused pub building in Runcorn.

Two fire engines from Widnes and Runcorn fire stations were dispatched to Pendennis Court yesterday afternoon, Sunday.

This came following crews receiving reports of the blaze at around 12.40pm in the former The Fiddlers Three pub.

This is not the first time the closed pub has been targeted by arsonists, with another deliberate fire reported at the building in July last year.

A spokesman for Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service said: “Firefighters in breathing apparatus used a house reel jet to extinguish a small fire in a disused building.

“A high-pressure fan was used to clear the smoke.

“Fire crews requested the attendance of the police as it was suspected to have been a deliberate ignition.”