Teenagers charged over suspicious Sydney factory fire

A pair of teenage boys have been charged over a "once-in-a-decade" fire in Sydney's CBD. (Dean Lewins/AAP PHOTOS)

Two teenagers have been charged over a catastrophic building fire that razed a derelict inner-city Sydney factory.

More than 100 firefighters battled to contain the Surry Hills blaze in May but the once-in-a-decade fire brought down a seven-storey former hat factory.

NSW Police said two 13-year-old boys were charged with a number of offences on Wednesday, including destroying property with fire and entering premises without a lawful excuse.

One of the boys was also charged with two counts of shoplifting, alleged to have occurred at a grocery store on Elizabeth Street on the same day.

Three teenagers handed themselves in to police in the days after the fire which led to dozens of people being evacuated from nearby buildings and left at least 100 people living in the area displaced.

Police said they had spoken with a number of teenagers after the massive inferno caused mayhem across the city and required specialist teams to demolish the entire structure and surrounding buildings. 

Both boys will appear at a children’s court on October 4. 

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