Argyll firefighters battled a wildfire for 15 hours after a hillside in Oban was engulfed by flames last night.
The grass fire broke out on a hillside near Longsdale Crescent and fire crews were alerted at 3.32pm.
Four appliances were deployed with help from firecrews from Inveraray.
The fire continued to burn into the evening and throughout the night, but firefighters were forced to suspend operations during dark hours.
Residents watched from across the town as flames raged dangerously close to the McCaig’s Tower.
#wildfire in #oban tonight next to McCaigs tower. Not good to see, @fire_scot out doing their best. pic.twitter.com/S8WGHvazaF
— BaskingSharkScotland (@BaskingSharkSco) April 16, 2021
The fire service confirmed crews returned to the hillside "at first light" this morning.
A Scottish Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson said: "We attended a grass fire near to Longsdale Crescent in Oban. The initial call came in at 3.32pm.
READ MORE: Scotland’s salmon farmers welcome SNP commitment to streamlined regulatory system for fish farming
"We had four appliances in attendance. The fire is now totally extinguished.”
On Tuesday, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service had issued a warning of “very high – extreme risk of wildfire”, which was in place across North-East, East and Central Scotland until Saturday.
Senior Officer Bruce Farquharson said: ‘We are asking the public to exercise extreme caution and think twice before using anything involving a naked flame.
“Many rural and remote communities are hugely impacted by wildfires, which can cause significant damage.
“Livestock, farmland, wildlife, protected woodland and sites of special scientific interest can all be devastated by these fires – as can the lives of people living and working in rural communities.
READ MORE: Zero Waste Scotland reminds Scots to recycle old batteries
“These fires can also have a hugely negative impact on the environment and the release of greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere.
“Human behaviour can significantly lower the chance of a wildfire starting, so it is crucial that people act safely and responsibly in rural environments, and always follow the Scottish Outdoor Access Code.”
WalkHighlands, which provides information for walkers adventuring in Scotland’s outdoors, urged people not to use fires or disposable barbecues when camping.
There's an extreme high fire risk in much of Scotland right now.
— walkhighlands (@walkhighlands) April 15, 2021
Despite pics you may see, real wildcamping does NOT include a fire, nor a disposable barbecue; they set peat soils alight even when u think extinguished & it's impossible to leave no trace. Use stoves for cooking! pic.twitter.com/y9NInAs5pC
Yesterday, another large grass fire broke out near Brodick on the Isle of Arran.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here