A TYRE company boss has spoken of his fears of a repeat attack ­— after his building was damaged by a 'suspicious' fire in the early hours of yesterday.

Feroz Suleman runs three RI Tyres repair and fitting shops in Blackburn.

Fire crews spent two hours at his Whalley Banks premises after they were called at 2.40am.

Now the police are investigating the fire as 'suspicious' after Mr Suleman's CCTV caught two people on film apparently pouring petrol on a pile of old tyres and setting fire to them on the yard of a neighbouring unit.

Mr Suleman, who also has RI Tyres premises in Burnley Road and Copy Nook, said: "The fire caused thousands of pounds worth of damage.

"It's the last thing I need. I would call it a hate crime.

"I now go home and wonder if I'll get a good night's sleep for fear someone will set fire to one of my three premises.

"My CCTV clearly shows two people pouring petrol on a pile of old tyres on the neighbouring unit at the side of my building and then setting fire to them.

"I have given the film to the police."

The fire caused thick smoke to billow through the air over the Whalley Banks trading estate.

A police spokeswoman said: "We were called at around 2.45am on Tuesday morning to reports of a fire on Whalley Banks in Blackburn.

"We attended and found two buildings were alight. At this time the fire is being treated as suspicious and our enquiries are ongoing."

A fire service spokesperson said: "It looks like someone has set the front of the building on fire which has resulted in a pile of tyres being set alight too. There was a lot of thick black smoke and some damage to the front of the building.

"The fire is now being treated as suspicious."

Badsha Khan, owner of the next door Quick Shine Hand Car wash which also replaces tyres, said: "We had a pile of old tyres about one or two metres from the RI tyres wall which someone appears to have set alight."