HOMES left derelict by a fire last year have been targeted again in a suspected arson.

Two children have been arrested following a fire in a derelict building on Barrow's Salthouse Road.

It is the same site where residents were forced to leave their homes last year after a fire was declared a major incident by emergency services.

Cumbria Police said on Tuesday a 15-year-old and 12-year-old were arrested on suspicion of arson and remained in police custody.

Several fire crews were scrambled to attend the scene having received a call shortly after 9pm on Monday. 

The fire was said to have been started in the roof space of one of the homes, which are being supported with scaffolding.

Fire engines from Walney, Ulverston and two from Barrow - along with an aerial ladder from Barrow - attended the derelict building.

A spokesman for Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service said: "The fire involved the roof space of a building where firefighters used two breathing apparatus, to extinguish the fire.

"Crews were in attendance for approximately an hour and 15 minutes."

Police said no injuries were reported during the incident.

Crews from across Cumbria were called to the same row of houses in June last year in an incident that affected multiple properties at the intersection of Salthouse Road and Marsh Street, several of which have since been deemed ‘uninhabitable’.

Since then, motorists travelling down Salthouse Road have faced disruption in the form of temporary traffic lights with the road blocked off in front of the affected houses.

The pavement is also closed to pedestrians with fears over the stability of the homes and Westmorland and Furness Council warning of danger to the public due to the 'dangerous' condition of the buildings.

Skips have recently been placed outside the homes causing further blockage to the road and are due to be there until August 25, according to council traffic updates.

The closure of the adjoining Marsh Street is scheduled to be in place until March 2025.