Dundee tenants fear they could have been “trapped” in their homes during one of four fires across the city at the weekend.
Firefighters were called to Dura Street on Sunday evening, after smoke was seen belching from the rear of homes near Fortes Café.
It is among a spate of fires in Dundee over the weekend, including at West Gourdie Industrial Estate, West End Campus and a car fire on Lorimer Street.
Police are treating three as wilful but are not yet investigating the Dura Street blaze.
Whilst the fire was quickly extinguished, those living within the block in Stobswell believe it could have easily spread, blocking the only exit to their flats.
Tenant Anthony Spencer said the proximity of the bin store to the communal stairwell could have posed problems if the residents had to evacuate.
The 25-year-old said: “The first we were alerted to was the smell, it was terrible.
“The homes weren’t evacuated but the spiral staircase is directly beside it, if the fire had taken hold I think we’d struggle to get out.
“We could have been trapped.
“I went down to see how bad it was and the light fixture has completely melted.
“There was an issue a few weeks back where the communal close door was damaged.
“It’s concerning that this has happened, there is also a neighbour’s cat which sits down there and could have been injured.”
Fellow tenant, Paul Peters, said there were a number of items inside the store which were potentially flammable.
The 31-year-old returned home at around 9pm to find the bin area smouldering.
He said: “There is a massive concern this could have spread for sure.
“There was an old TV box inside and a number of items which could have been flammable.
“We’ve got the Eurobins down there as well but that lock-up is used for tenants to store stuff.
“The door isn’t locked though so it’s easily accessible, I think there is only one tenant who maybe had a key that stored a pram in there.”
Car fire at nearby street
Meanwhile, residents on Lorimer Street described their horror after a vehicle was deliberately torched outside their homes.
Firefighters were called near to the junction with West Street on Saturday evening.
One 67-year-old tenant reported seeing a “flash” before flames began shooting into the air from a Ford.
He confirmed this was the second incident of a vehicle being torched in the area, sparking concern from those living locally.
A police spokeswoman said: “Around 11.05pm on Saturday, 1 July, 2023, officers received a report of a vehicle on fire on Lorimer Street, Dundee.
“The fire is being treated as wilful and inquiries are ongoing.”
Four fire crews were sent to West Gourdie Industrial Estate on Saturday night. Just over 24 later, three appliances and a specialist height unit were sent to West End Campus, which houses St Joseph’s RC Primary School, Victoria Park Primary and Balgay Hill nursery.
