‘Incredible’ community rally to fight scenic Scottish Highlands wildfire
Teams of firefighters and locals have been battling a major wildfire in one of the most scenic parts of the Scottish Highlands.
Emergency crews were alerted to the blaze, on a hillside in the north-west Highlands, on Monday afternoon.
A helicopter and six fire engines have been tackling the fire, near the remote village of Achintraid in the Kishorn area. Local volunteers have also been helping beat out the flames.
The alarm was first raised around 4pm on Monday, with the fire very quickly spreading across the hills behind Achintraid, moving into nearby Glen Mòr and towards Reraig near Lochcarron.
Dry and breezy weather conditions helped fan the flames, driving their spread.
Scottish Fire and Rescue
Service appliances were deployed from Lochcarron, Kyle of Lochalsh, Broadford and Inverness to attend.
Firefighters had remained at the scene overnight in a bid to stop the fire spreading, including patrolling the properties that were most at risk.
Residents in the area spent a fearful night as the fire raged close by.
Robert John Macinnes, whose lives in Achintraid, was one of those out on the hill assisting firefighters. He said: “Locals quickly became very concerned for the safety of houses and of livestock, so messages went around asking for help.
“Residents of Kishorn and nearby village Lochcarron managed to contain the blaze at a lower level using beaters, leafblowers and shovels, and by carrying buckets of water up from a small stream to wet the ground.
“A group of residents also went further up the hill where the fire was spreading across the hills.
“Between these two teams, and working with fire service crews, we managed to put out the fire above the first half of the village, but the fires beyond this had spread to a worrying size and the second half of the village remained at risk.
“It was an incredible example of a community coming together in an emergency and time of need.”