Man charged after arson attack

Military firefighters tackled the blaze at the house

A man has been charged following an arson attack on a house in north Belfast.

The house at Glenbryn Drive was badly damaged in the blaze on Friday night which was put out by military firefighters.

Nobody was in the house at the time but an elderly couple living next door have been forced to leave their home.

Their daughter-in-law Susan Skillen says they had a lucky escape.

"By the time I got to it, the house was well on fire," she said.

"About five minutes after that the Yellow Goddesses arrived and in total it took them about 15 minutes to get here.

"They had a bit of trouble trying to put the fire out but eventually they did."

"Their house is full of smoke and I'm going to have to take them to the next street to stay for the night," said Mrs Skillen.

A 23-year-old man is to appear at Belfast Magistrates Court on Monday charged with arson and intent to endanger life.