A RETIRED teacher from Malpas has spoken of his anger after his garden was destroyed by a deliberate blaze in a lane behind his home.

The fire, which started while the family were out on Sunday evening, burnt around 15 metre of hedges, leaving the property in The Firs exposed.

Roger Morgan, 63, said: “It’s concerning because anybody can walk into my garden now.

“My garden is exposed and I’m worried about my property.

“I find it very disappointing and I’m angry that this has happened. I’m totally confused why someone would do this.

“They probably thought it was a prank, but I’ll be out of pocket.”

The hedges, which were 30-years-old, will need to be cut down and be taken out, which Mr Morgan estimates will cost him hundreds of pounds.

A neighbour of Mr Morgan, who was at a golf club when the fire started, spotted the blaze when she went to water her plants.

She said that the fire services were at the scene within five minutes of her call. By the time Mr Morgan got back to the house at 6.30pm, the fire was out.

“When I came back, the fire service were outside my house and I didn’t have a clue what was going on,” added Mr Morgan.

“We assume it was a group of youngsters walking down the lane behind our house.

“We think it may have been a firework that started the fire as my neighbour heard a pop.

“Quite a big amount of damage was done in a small amount of time. It’s a lot of inconvenience.

“It’s the first anything like this has ever happened – hopefully, it’ll be the last time.”

A South Wales Fire and Rescue Services spokeswoman said confirmed that crews attended to a deliberate grass fire in The Firs on Sunday evening and that the fire was put out by 6.30pm.