Police officer ask Leeds parents if their child came home smelling of smoke as fires are investigated

It comes after firefighters from four stations spent Saturday afternoon and evening battling to stop the spread of haystack fires in open countryside near Swillington.

Residents living nearby were advised to keep their doors and windows closed as smoke billowed from the four burning haystacks in Hall Road.

Five fire engines were initially dispatched at around 3.10pm, with three remaining on site into the evening as work to damp down the smouldering haystacks continued.

A separate fire which caused significant damage to a shed and motorbikes in Primrose Hill Grove, Swillington, is also under investigation by police.

PSCO Andrew Hurley, a member of Garforth, Swillington, Kippax and Methley neighbourhood policing team, urged parents to check what their children had been doing on Saturday.

Sharing an appeal for footage or information, he wrote on Facebook: “Someone has set a couple of fires in Swillington. One of the fires was behind Primrose Hill Grove which caused significant damage to a shed and some motorbikes.

"The other fire caused damage to some hay bales and land on Hall Road. Several fire engines had to attend and deal with the incident. The incidents were in the afternoon from around 14:45hrs onwards.”

He urged anyone who had seen anything suspicious or captured something on CCTV to email [email protected] or call the 101 non-emergency number.

He closed his appeal by saying: “Any contact with the police will be confidential. Has your child come home smelling of fire/smoke?”