A LIT firework put through the letterbox of a Tavistock house on Sunday could have had fatal consequences, police said this week.
The lit firework was put through the letterbox of a house in St David?s Road in the early hours of Sunday, at approximately 3am.
A police spokesman said that fortunately the occupants had smoke detectors which awoke them and made them aware of the situation. They found the hallway filled with smoke.
He said: ?If the alarm had been defective, or if they had not had an alarm, we could have been looking at a burnt-out house and two dead bodies.
?This goes far beyond anti-social behaviour and has been recorded as ?Arson endangering life?, an offence that carries life imprisonment as its maximum penalty.?
The police spokesman stressed the importance of smoke alarms and advised people to check the batteries in theirs.
Anyone with any information or who may have seen anyone in the St David?s Road or Greenlands area at the time is asked to contact PC Simon Raeburn at Tavistock Police Station on 08452 777444.
They are also interested in hearing from anyone who may have suffered a similar incident but did not report it. The incident number is JT/04/1319.