Flats catch fire after car rammed into Birmingham shop in suspected arson attack
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Flats and a supermarket in Birmingham caught fire after a car smashed into the building in a suspected arson attack, authorities believe. Police say the vehicle was "set alight, causing the shop and flats above to catch fire" in the early hours of Monday.
Pictures show a burnt-out 4x4 being extracted from the charred shop in Stratford Road, Sparkhill, by a fire truck as detectives investigate what happened. Local property developer Isaac Zintaan said residents of his nearby premises told him they heard a "loud explosion" that sounded "like a bomb went off".
"[When I arrived] everyone was coughing due to the intensity of the smoke," he added. He thinks the fire was caused by a car which was set on fire and then rammed into a supermarket. Read more from Sky News:King chooses former hospital chapel for Christmas messageUK economy heading for 'worst of all worlds', CBI warns.
Follow our channel and never miss an update. West Midlands Fire Service said the blaze in the front of a retail store spread to shop signage and windows of the flats above. On Monday morning, it said the fire was "under control" and no injuries had been reported.
