A TEENAGER has been charged following his arrest after potentially hazardous substances were found at a house where firefighters fought a blaze.

Police were alerted by Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service of the fire at an address in the village of Glanton, near Alnwick, shortly before 9pm on Tuesday.

Officers attended and a number of potentially hazardous substances were found inside the property, in South View.

A joint investigation, involving the local council, was launched to identify the substances and to bring the incident to a safe and timely conclusion.

Nearby residents were temporarily evacuated as a precaution and an exclusion zone was put in place in the vicinity of the house, while Army bomb disposal experts were summoned to examine and help with the removal of the substances present.

A 17-year-old male, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was arrested in the wake of the fire and the discovery of the substances.

He was charged with arson, recklessly endangering life, and making or having explosives in suspicious circumstances, and was appearing before magistrates in Bedlington, sitting as a youth court, over the weekend.