LIVES could have been lost when youngsters set fire to Buckfastleigh Town Hall late on Friday night, causing thousands of pounds of damage.

The teenage yobs also went into Buckfastleigh Rangers' football ground at the Duckspond, where it is believed they started a fire in a dug-out early on Saturday.

During the past six years the town council has spent £100,000 on the town hall, putting in new toilets and disabled facilities, three new kitchens, a new central heating boiler, decorated rooms and refurbished the main hall together with other improvements.

Clerk Judith Hart said the damage was soul-destroying for the council and residents after so much work had been under taken to provide better facilities for the benefit of all.

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