Man jailed for setting fire to rented flat
BBCA 60-year-old man has been sentenced to six years in prison for setting fire to his rented room badly damaging a flat.
James McGlinchey started the fire on Denton Street, Carlisle, on the morning of 22 September last year while he was in the process of being evicted from the property.
Surrounding streets in the city were sealed off as fire crews from Carlisle, Brampton and Longtown put out the blaze.
McGlinchey, who had lived at the property for 40 years, pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to arson and being reckless as to whether life was endangered.
Recalling the fire, landlord Kevin Wooldridge said: "Denton Holme was shut all day.
"It was a blue light area, ambulances, fire engines, police everywhere, it was a bit of a bad scene.
"There were two people asleep either side."
Cumbria PoliceThe owner of a dental business underneath the flat said he had lost £75,000 in revenue since the fire.
Andy Pattinson has relocated to a different part of the city and his business making false teeth and mouth guards is still not fully operational.
He said: "A lot of the materials were destroyed, the dental chair that is destroyed, everything basically, we've had to start from scratch.
"It's been really difficult, a really tough time."
Sentencing McGlinchey at Carlisle Crown Court, Judge Barker said the blaze had been a "terrifying experience" for an elderly couple and a young family who had to be evacuated from neighbouring properties.
