The Mascot printing firm was set alight on the night of October 25, taking 50 firefighters over an hour to bring the fire, fuelled by flammable inks and toners, under control. Smoke proved to be a hazard at the nearby Sydney International Airport as flames flared up to 15m into the sky.

The fire initially threatened other buildings and forced the evacuation of homes. Seven homes were subsequently damaged as wild weather moved in two days later, causing a wall of the extensively damaged factory to collapse. No one was injured in the collapse, which fell onto the back of adjoining homes.

NSW Police are now investigating whether the fire was deliberately lit. The police have indicated evidence at the scene could lead toward suspicions it was not an accident, but that further investigation was required.

One resident reported he heard a car pull up outside the Elizabeth Avenue factory. He heard the sound of a window breaking, followed immediately by a loud explosion and a car pull away at high speed.

Lionheart Offset is a family run and owned business with 40 years experience in commercial printing, specialising in full colour work, particularly brochures, stationary, flyers, posters and booklet work. It offers a range of offset and digital printing services, as well as prepress, finishing and warehousing facilities.

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