Plough Inn owner left baffled after arson attack

A fire broke out in and old outhouse and boiler room at the rear of the Plough Inn on Thursday night. 

Owner Andrew Roscouet and his wife Feona had finished work and were driving home when Mr Roscouet received a call from the CFA notifying him of the fire. 

The fire is being treated as suspicious and Mr Roscouet is baffled as to why anyone would target the business. 

“It has to have been lit, there's no other way,” he said. 

“We haven't had any issues with any people that we know of, it's  a pretty laid back pub. 

“I don't think any of us really have any beef with anybody here.”

The blaze started about 11.50pm, about 20 minutes after the last three people had left the building.

A neighbour called Triple-0 to report the fire. 

CFA investigators attended the scene on Friday morning. 

Police believe an accelerant was used but are yet to confirm that. 

Despite the ordeal and the possibility it could have been much worse, Mr Roscouet refused to be shaken.  

“I'm not concerned about it,” he said. 

“What can you do? 

“You just keep going on and you can't worry about stuff like that. 

“I've got more to worry about than stuff being lit on fire. 

“If something has been lit it's just stupid and it's not a petty crime. 

"There could have been a family upstairs, there could have been kids involved. 

"But you can't worry about it otherwise you would pull your hair out.”

If the incident had occurred on Friday night the venue would have been packed, and the neighbour who called emergency services wouldn't have been home.

Mr Roscouet and his wife have owned the pub, built in 1860, for three years. 

“Another 10 minutes and it would have gone up,” he said. 

“It's just a dirty old outhouse that we use that was damaged, and it's nothing historical either.

“It was just a bit of luck that it didn't occur on Friday night.”