TRADERS are pleading for CCTV cameras following an arson attack which gutted a derelict shop and caused more than £30,000 worth of damage to a butchers.

Police believe the blaze, at the back of shops along Randlesdown Road, in Bellingham, at about 9.45pm last Thursday, was started deliberately in a garden shed.

It spread through dumped rubbish strewn across the garden and then to the empty building before moving on to Bell Meats butchers and causing more than £30,000 worth of damage.

Shop owners, who are calling on Lewisham Council to install CCTV cameras and clear dumped rubbish, say this is just the latest in a long wave of car fires and shop burglaries over the past two years.

Bell Meats owner Terry Willis said: “We’ve been broken into twice in the past two years. And this fire has totally destroyed our freezer.

“We supply several shops with chicken ribs but they have been barbecued in the fire. That’s three-quarters of our business gone. We can make the money back eventually but people could have been killed. These kids will do it again and again until they are caught. That’s why we need cameras.” Vedat Kemal, who owns the Rod and Line fish-and-chip shop, said: “Kids hide under the trees where it’s dark and that’s when they set fire to cars.” Just a few months ago, youths stole a car, ram-raided the back of Bellingham Recreational Project’s premises and then torched the vehicle, causing severe damage to the building.

Julian Bourse, project manager at the charity, said: “The back of the shops has become a local playground for kids. It’s also used as a tipping ground for dirt, rubble and tree clippings.” Lewisham Mayor Steve Bullock visited the site following last week’s arson attack.

He said: “I have instructed officials at the council to look at both the immediate impact of the fire and what needs to be done to ensure this never happens again.” Anyone with information about the incident should call Lewisham CID on 020 8284 8345 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.