Flats catch fire after car rammed into Birmingham shop in suspected arson attack

Flats and a supermarket in Birmingham caught fire after a car smashed into the building in a suspected arson attack, authorities believe.

Police say the vehicle was “set alight, causing the shop and flats above to catch fire” in the early hours of Monday.

Pictures show a burnt-out 4×4 being extracted from the charred shop in Stratford Road, Sparkhill, by a fire truck as detectives investigate what happened.

Local property developer Isaac Zintaan said residents of his nearby premises told him they heard a “loud explosion” that sounded “like a bomb went off”.

“[When I arrived] everyone was coughing due to the intensity of the smoke,” he added.

He thinks the fire was caused by a car which was set on fire and then rammed into a supermarket.

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West Midlands Fire Service said the blaze in the front of a retail store spread to shop signage and windows of the flats above.

On Monday morning, it said the fire was “under control” and no injuries had been reported.

In a statement, West Midlands Police said it was investigating “a suspected arson” and appealed for witnesses to come forward.