A man has been arrested and an arson investigation has been launched by police after a building fire at a County Durham nightclub. 

Officers from Durham Police and firefighters from County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service were called to a building on Bede Way in Peterlee at around 1.10am on Thursday (November 9).

The police force are treating the incident as arson and have confirmed that an investigation is underway, alongside the fire service, to determine the cause of the incident. 

The Northern Echo: Vibe Nightclub in PeterleeVibe Nightclub in Peterlee (Image: GOOGLE MAPS)

One person is currently in police custody at this time. 

A spokesperson for Durham Police said: "Police attended a fire at a premises in Bede Way, Peterlee, at around 1.10am today (November 9).

"Officers are treating the fire as arson and an investigation has been launched.

"A man in his thirties has been arrested in connection with the incident and remains in police custody."

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The fire is believed to have taken place in Vibe Nightclub, which is next to The Eden Bar on Bede Way in Peterlee. 

The Vibe venue has put out a statement and has called for people to not speculate online about the incident, and asked for people to not 'harass' its staff about the fire.

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In a statement, Vibe Nightclub said: "As you may or may not be aware there's been a bit of a fire in your favourite nightclub.

"We'd love it if you could stop speculating when the likelihood is you don't have a bloody clue what you're on about.

"Also, all of our staff know about this so you don't need to harass them either.

"We will be back, you can't get rid of us."