A BLOCK of council flats in York had to be evacuated after arsonists started a blaze in a rubbish chute.

Ambulance service chiefs said several people were taken to hospital with smoke inhalation after the firebugs struck at Gisburn House, in Burnsall Drive, Acomb.

A spokeswoman for North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service said smoke spread through the entire block, damaging the ground floor, two ground floor flats and the lower stairwell.

The other three floors suffered less serious smoke damage.

Leanne Cross, 17, said: "I was upstairs in my flat at the time.The first I knew was when the firemen came and told everyone to get out. There were no alarms or anything. The hallway was filled with black smoke. You couldn't see anything."

Amy Gray, 19, said: "It's frightening that this could happen. There were children and babies from the flats who had to stand outside for ages, while all this was going on."

A City of York Council spokeswoman, said: "It looks as though vandals started a small fire in one of the bin chutes. The fire brigade were called and tenants were evacuated for approximately 30 minutes as a precaution.

Mick Brighton, the fire & rescue service's arson co-ordinator for York and North Yorkshire, said: "This was an extremely serious incident. The lives of residents were put at risk."

The fire started at about 9.15 last night.

Updated: 14:24 Tuesday, June 24, 2003