POLICE have spoken to two children aged six and nine in relation to a supermarket blaze which caused £10,000 worth of damage in Astley Bridge.

Officers said the two children have been 'identified in relation to' the fire which led to the the evacuation of the ASDA store on Blackburn Road for an hour.

The pair identified by police cannot be charged with a crime as they are under the age of criminal responsibility, which is 10. Instead, their parents will be spoken to about their behaviour.

It is still not clear how the fire in the outdoor building, which was used to store bags of charcoal and cans of de-icer, actually started.

Eyewitness Danielle Wesley, 19, of Astley Bridge, praised the actions of ASDA's fire marshals and the firefighters over the blaze.

She said: "At first we didn't even know there was a fire but then we got told it wasn't a drill so I was quite worried.

"We were evacuated from the building very quickly and safely. We then moved to near HSBC as we were told there was de-icer in the outbuilding which is extremely flammable. Then we heard popping, which was the de-icer starting to go up.

"The fire crew got to the scene extremely quickly and managed to put the fire out after a little while.

"I'm very grateful for the fire crew who were there. They handled it amazingly and so quickly. Thankfully no-one was hurt."

Locals had feared the blaze was an escalation of nuisance incidents carried out by youths in Astley Bridge Park that lies diagonally opposite the supermarket.

But Inspector Wayne Readfern, of Bolton North Integrated Neighbourhood Policing Team, said: "The two boys are not known to the police at all and not involved in any other anti-social behaviour that we know of. I am aware that there are reports of anti-social behaviour in Astley Bridge but there is no way any part of Astley Bridge is a no-go area. Youth services have been spending time in that area recently, engaging with the local young people.

"We discuss all aspects of crime and disorder with our partners and as a result of some recent low reports we have asked youth services to attend.

"We also have plans to increase patrols in this area during our Op Treacle period of Halloween and Bonfire Night.

"But this applies to many locations in the Bolton North area."

Anyone with any information about the fire should call police on 101.