ARSONISTS have caused thousands of pounds of damage after setting alight motorbikes on the street.

The attacks risk turning the motorbikes, which are effectively petrol tanks on wheels, into fire bombs, posing a huge threat to people and passing vehicles.

Richmond resident, Jonathan van Blerk, posted video footage of his own bike and four others parked alongside Richmond Green, which suffered serious damage.

Subsequently, a resident in Barnes posted an image of a burned out motorbike in Church Road. It is not known if the events are connected, however such attacks are extremely rare.

Mr van Blerk, a design consultant and founder of Formuleyes, based in Kingston, which is the official licensee for Formula 1 eyewear, posted a video of the fire damage on Twitter.

The video includes a commentary, where he asks: "Richmond council, what the hell is going on here? I parked by motorbike overnight and this is what has happened."

He told Nub News: "All five of the motorcycles parked there were burnt down, clearly on purpose. It is very irritating and I am amazed that this would happen on Richmond Green."

Mr van Blerk said neither the police or council have been able to say whether the incident, which happened overnight earlier this week, was captured on CCTV.

Council leader, Gareth Roberts, responded to the attack in a Tweet, saying: "Good Grief - this is just mindless vandalism. Hope there's CCTV or witnesses that can identify whoever did this."

The arson attack comes in the wake of long-standing concerns among residents in the Richmond Green area over anti-social behaviour, vandalism, drinking and drug dealing.

Last year, residents considered bringing in the private security firm, MyLocalBobby, which operates security patrols based on households paying a monthly subscription. At the time, both Richmond Council and the local police advised against going ahead with the proposal.