THE visible damage caused by the arson attack to Smithills School was bad enough but it could have been so much worse.
Fire officers are speaking to pupils at the school, where a New Year's Eve blaze wrecked three classrooms and caused smoke damage to a further six, leaving a £600,000 repair bill.
However, as officers are due to tell pupils, the fire could have resulted in something far more serious, even death.
Vandals have been causing problems in the area for some time and a short sharp talk on just how serious playing with fire can be may be just the lesson they need.
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