RESIDENTS spoke of their shock after an arson attack caused thousands of pounds worth of damage at two houses in Little Hulton.

Crews from Farnworth fire station were called to Bowker Street at 1am this morning.

On arrival they found two large garden sheds had been set alight in a back garden, in a suspected arson attack.

The initial blaze in one garden then spread to a fence and to the garden shed next door.

A number of valuable items were destroyed in the sheds including a motorbike and push bikes.

One of the owners of the houses affected told The Bolton News she was in shock and was too upset to speak about the incident.

Neighbours described how firefighters tackled the blaze during the night for about two hours.

There was visible damage to the back of the garden later that morning.

A neighbour, who asked not to be named, said: "It was quite a large fire, it is sad that a lot of items have been damaged. Hopefully they will catch whoever is responsible."

A spokesman for the fire service said: "The cause is currently unknown but it was possible that it was malicious and it is being treated as suspicious.

"Two gardens were destroyed and the fence panels burnt down. Everything inside the sheds was damaged too which included a motorbike and several push bikes.

"There was thousands of pounds worth of damage."

Police confirmed the incident is being treated as arson, and have launched an investigation.

A spokesman said: "We were called at about 1.15am on Tuesday to reports of an arson on Bowker Street, Little Hulton.

"It appears that a shed was set alight and the fire spread to a fence and a neighbouring shed in the next garden.

"No arrests have been made currently but investigations are ongoing."