A keyworker from Stowmarket says she is frightened to sleep after the bins directly below her flat were set alight three times in the space of two days.

The woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, said she could barely sleep after the fires broke out below the flats in the former Jokers nightclub, opposite the town’s Regal Theatre.

Speaking of the incidents, the keyworker said: “I seriously can’t live like this it’s too scary. How can you sleep when you know someone seems intent on burning the place down?!”

She explained there had been two fires on Saturday, April 25 and another on Monday, 27 – all of which occurred late in the evenings.

She continued: “The rubbish bins were set alight in the bin storage room, which is directly below my flat so I was particularly worried.

“After it happened on the Saturday night I couldn’t sleep and I kept getting up to check every little noise outside.

“We are all living in fear here. They have had three attempts now, but the next time could be worse.”

The keyworker said it has been very “distressing” for all tenants of the 25 flats, some of whom are also essential workers and “are already dealing with enough stress”.

The fire service sent a single crew from Stowmarket to extinguish the fires twice on Saturday, April 25 and a third time late on Monday, April 27.

The first was reported at 8.56pm on the Saturday, a second exactly one hour later at 9.56pm and a third at 9.44pm on the Monday.

The keyworker said: “It is likely that this has been the work of hooligans gaining access to the buildings and doing it for a laugh.”

Commenting on the incidents, a spokesman for Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service, said: “We were called to a third reported bin fire in two days at the address on Ipswich Street in Stowmarket.

“The bin was extinguished shortly after arrival and information was passed to the police and the fire prevention team.”

Suffolk Constabulary has been approached for comment.