Belfast knife attack disorder: I will never get over watching my home of 13 years burn down

Jamie Corrie said by the time firefighters arrived his house was "already engulfed in flames"

Families in Belfast, including one with a two-month-old baby, are counting the cost of Tuesday night's violence after being forced to flee their homes in the face of fires.

A number of houses were ablaze across the city after a night of disorder amid following a knife attack on Monday night.

One man, whose home of 13 years was destroyed by fire, said watching it burn down was "a feeling I'll never get over".

Jamie Corrie, speaking outside the burnt out remains of his house on Lendrick Street in east Belfast, said by the time firefighters arrived his house was "already engulfed in flames".

His house caught fire after a car belonging to "foreign nationals" next door was set on fire, he said.

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Corrie, who has lived on the same east Belfast street for more than a decade, said his house went up in flames.

Speaking to BBC News NI outside his home on Wednesday morning, he said he was "gutted".

"I told them before they were lighting the car, I said 'this is my property'.

"See standing there watching your house get burnt… that's a feeling I'll never get over," he says.

While he is also angry about the attack in north Belfast, he asked: "What does this resolve? What does this actually do? Burning cars out, wrecking your own community and now one of their own has just lost their home."

He said by the time firefighters arrived his house was "already engulfed in flames" and everything is destroyed.

"There's stuff in there that's sentimental, can't be replaced, that you'll not get again."

However, he's thankful his kids were not in the house at the time.

Yura, 19, is part of the Ukrainian family who were forced to flee their home on Lendrick Street in east Belfast during the disorder

Yura, 19, is part of the Ukrainian family who were forced to flee their home on Lendrick Street in east Belfast during the disorder. She described the scenes last night as "terrifying".

"My neighbour's house was set on fire. So, my front door caught the fire a bit. It had to be kicked out to stop the fire because it was about to go in the house".

"I was with my dog at the house, so I had to escape through the back door. My neighbour's dog was trapped in the house so we were also trying to break into their house to get the dog.

"I was lucky that my friends live nearby, so they let me crash for the night."

Anselme Shima has lived in east Belfast for 13 years, near to where Tuesday night's disorder broke out

Anselme Shima, who for 13 years has lived in east Belfast near where scenes of violence erupted on Tuesday night, said he was devastated and horrified.

"I didn't know what I can do to protect my children."

Also worried about the night of violence are healthcare staff.

Biji Jose, from the Northern Ireland Indian Nurses Forum, says colleagues are "really worried" about their safety

Biji Jose, from the Northern Ireland Indian Nurses Forum, has been living in Northern Ireland for 23 years.

She's a senior nurse and is worried her colleagues from the Indian community may decide to leave Northern Ireland in the aftermath.

She said junior colleagues have been in touch about the recent violence and are "really worried" about their safety.

"At the minute, I can see very anxious faces and too much worry about their families, children, future jobs, insecurity about walking around the street freely like before," she said.

"People sometimes think about we are here to come to take their job. No, it is not the way," Jose added, saying healthcare workers were among the most needed employees in Northern Ireland.

"We are filling the workforce shortage and easing the waiting lists for procedures, because of our relentless, selfless, kind services supporting the community to get the proper care on time."

'We're leaving right now'

Another man who is originally from India and now lives in north Belfast has decided to leave Northern Ireland after Tuesday night's violence.

"We're leaving right now," he told BBC News NI.

The man, who doesn't want to be named, said he "didn't sleep all night".

"It was horrible. It was like a war zone."

"Everything was burning," he said, adding that glass was smashed and everyone hide in their homes.

"No one was coming out, people were so scared."

The man has lived in the UK for 25 years, the last four in Northern Ireland.