Two children charged over church fire

TWO children have been charged in connection with a huge blaze at a disused church which saw around 40 firefighters battle the flames for more than 15 hours.

The boys – aged 13 and 15 years old – have been reported to the Children’s Reporter following the ferocious fire which gutted the three-storey building at Stanley Place, Abbeyhill, on Monday.

No-one was injured in the fire, but smoke could be seen billowing from the empty church – most recently used as a warehouse and meat factory – for miles around the Capital.