Police have charged four teenagers over a fire that destroyed the children's playground at a Coalfields fast food restaurant and the business only able to operate as a drive-through for the foreseeable future.
Investigators looking into last weekend's suspicious fire at Cessnock McDonald's went to two Cessnock schools on Thursday where they arrested a 15-year-old boy and a 14-year-old boy.
Then, on Thursday evening, two girls - aged 16 and 17 - attended Cessnock Police Station where they were also charged over the fire.
Each of the four teenagers faces one count of damaging property by fire.
They were all granted conditional bail and will face a children's court in August.
Firefighters from Cessnock, Abermain and Kearsley were called to the eatery on the corner of Allandale Road and Ferguson Street just after 3am on Sunday, where they found the children's playground equipment well-alight.
Firefighters said earlier this week the blaze, which took about two hours to extinguish, caused extensive damage to the front of the restaurant.
