A man has been jailed for setting fire to a block of flats, leaving one person in intensive care and several others having to be rescued by firefighters.

Trevor Peters, aged 50, from Chambersbury Lane, Hemel Hempstead, was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment at Harrow Crown Court on Tuesday, September 12.

On the morning of Sunday, May 15, 2016, Peters poured accelerant through the letterbox of a ground-floor at Redding House, Tolpits Lane, igniting a large-scale blaze.

The fire was so extensive and spread so quickly that several residents on the second, third and fourth floors had to be rescued by firefighters using a ladder.

Thankfully there were no fatalities but one resident was seriously injured and spent several weeks in intensive care.

Serious damage was caused throughout the entire flat block, and residents were not able to return to their homes for almost six months.

Following a large-scale investigation, Peters was identified and subsequently arrested on July 14, 2016. He was later charged with one count of arson with intent to endanger life and seven counts of arson being reckless.

He pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity at court.

During the case, Judge Bourne described the circumstances as “truly horrific” and the victim impact statements as “extremely moving”. He also said it was “an amazing fluke” that no one had died.

Detective Sergeant Ian Siggery, from the Watford Local Crime Unit, said: “This was, as most arsons tend to be, a very long and challenging investigation.

“As a result of some great detective work by the officer in the case, Detective Constable Lauren Shipman, assisted by the rest of the team, we were able to secure an extremely pleasing sentence.

“I very much echo the sentiments of Judge Bourne in that it is a miracle that no one lost their life that day and that is very much down to the actions of our colleagues at Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service.

“While many of the residents and their families are still trying to come to terms with what happened, I hope this sentence brings at least some small comfort to them.”