'I feel like crying, it's part of our community... it's part of us': Heartbreak as leisure centre loved by generations of Salfordians torched

"I feel like crying. It’s part of our community, it's been there for years."

Watching on as firefighters sprayed water on the smouldering remains of Clarendon Leisure Centre, one woman summed up the mood in this corner of Salford.

She was one of many visibly shaken by the scene of devastation left after a huge fire ripped through the building in the early hours of of Friday.

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Video footage and images showed flames erupting from the leisure centre as large plumes of smoke soared high across the city. Firefighters were called to the scene at about 2.45am and tried to bring the fire under control.

A large part of the building - believed to be the swimming pool area - was completed gutted by the blaze. Police are treating the fire as arson and have launched an investigation. No one was injured and no arrests have been made.

As people passed the leisure centre's burned and twisted shell on their way to work and school, the sense of shock, sadness and loss was palpable.

"It's part of us, Clarry Baths," said one woman. "You feel wounded, it's like grief."

In Pendleton, a working class community, the leisure centre was special. Generations of families learned to swim there while its kids clubs were a lifeline for parents and their children during the school holidays.

It is a beacon of hope, a 'vital' facility for so many. And after decades at the heart of the community, the ageing leisure centre, off Liverpool Street, was in the process of being refurbished. The swimming pool reopened last month while the gym was in the process of being extended.

Now, there is fear that it may be lost forever. Sheryl Singleton, whose Towyn