Fireworks start sports centre fire

Two hundred people were evacuated from a sports centre in north-west London where boys playing with fireworks are thought to have started a fire.

CCTV footage shows two boys putting something in a locker which then caught fire in Harrow Leisure Centre, Christchurch Avenue at 1910 BST on Thursday.

Staff at the centre had already been warned that three youths had fireworks in the changing rooms and had evacuated the building.

It took 25 firefighters to control the fire, which damaged part of the centre's ground floor.

This was potentially a very dangerous act of arson Detective Sergeant Andy George

The Harrow fire was just one of 800 emergency calls made to London Fire Brigade between 1800 BST and 2200 BST on Bonfire Night.

No-one was hurt in the fire which police are treating as arson.

Detective Sergeant Andy George said: "This was potentially a very dangerous act of arson.

"It was a busy time at the leisure centre with a lot of people using its facilities at the time.

"We would like to hear from anyone who was at the leisure centre on Wednesday night who may have seen the suspects."

The boys were both white and were wearing tracksuit bottoms. One had a beige GAP hooded top and a baseball cap.