Macclesfield FC responds to suspected arson attack on stadium
The club has issued a statement
Last updated 1 hour ago
Macclesfield Football Club has issued a statement after they became aware of what they called a "suspected arson attempt" at their stadium.
The club posted to its X account that the attempt occurred at the Leasing.com stadium either in the late hours of yesterday evening (Monday 2nd March) or the early hours of this morning (Tuesday 3rd).
The post read: "Emergency services have responded immediately and are on site, tackling the blaze in the affected area/s."
"Despite understandable concern, we urge everyone to please avoid the area, anyone nearby to keep windows shut, and not to approach the stadium or disrupt the progress of the emergency services.
"We would like to reassure everyone that the situation is under control, there are no casualties, and investigations are already underway in to the cause of the fire.
"We would like to thank everyone for their concern and the timely response of those who alerted emergency services so quickly."
Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service received reports of flames visible over a wall of Macclesfield's Moss Rose stadium (known as Leasing.com Stadium for sponsorship reasons) just before 1am this morning.
When officers arrived, they found an outbuilding adjacent to the club's shop on fire.
Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service says an initial investigation indicates that the fire was started deliberately.
The service posted to its website: "Two firefighters wearing breathing apparatus extinguished the blaze using hose reel water jets. They remained at the scene until 4:30, damping down and using a thermal imaging camera to check for hotspots."