A pony has been killed in a yard fire that police are treating as arson.
The fire occurred at a stables in Stockport, Greater Manchester, in the early hours of Tuesday morning (14 July).
A neighbour of the yard in Winnington Road, Marple, called firefighters at 1.25am.
Crews worked for almost three hours to extinguish the fire.
A block of nine stables, a barn and equipment were destroyed, amounting to £80,000-worth of damage.
Reuben, the seven-year-old Welsh section A who died, was stabled overnight due to his restricted diet.
The other five horses kept at the yard were unharmed — four had been turned out overnight and another was being kept at the vets due to an injury.
“Our neighbours were woken by flashes, cracks and bangs — they thought it was a thunderstorm, but then they saw great big orange flames,” said yard owner Kerry Pardon.
“We’ve lost everything. We came here two years ago and we built the yard from the ground up — all our work has been shattered.
“The worst part of it is losing Reubin. He belongs to a six-year-old girl who lost her previous pony six months ago due to a shoulder injury.
“Reubin was a beautiful pony with a personality to match.”
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Three crews from Marple, Offerton and Stockport fire stations attended the scene.
“They used hose reels to bring the fire under control and were on the scene for almost three hours, but due to the severity of the blaze the stables and outbuildings were completely destroyed,” said a spokesman for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service.
A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police told H&H that the fire was being treated as arson.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101.
