Suspected arsonists have been criticised for starting a fire in a country park during the coronavirus lockdown.
The blaze took place at the Rising Sun Country Park, in Benton, North Tyneside, at 4.45pm on Tuesday.
During the incident, some trees in a woodland area at the site went up in flames and two youths were seen running away from the scene.
Now Northumbria Police has appealed for witnesses to come forward with information about the offence.
One woman, who lives in the area, said: "Whoever did this should be ashamed of themselves.
"It's bad enough if someone starts a fire at any time, but it's even worse when we are in the middle of a lockdown.
"This was a stupid and senseless act. It puts pressure on emergency services that are already stretched."
A spokesperson from the Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service said they received a number of 999 calls alerting them to the incident and a crew from the Wallsend station attended the scene.
The fire service suspects the blaze was started maliciously.
A Northumbria Police spokesperson added: “On Tuesday at 4.45pm, we received a report of a small fire being set at The Rising Sun Countryside Centre in Benton, North Tyneside.
“Two youths were seen running away from the area.
“Anyone with any information on the incident is asked to visit our website’s report an incident section, quoting log 767 of 140420.”
