Forest fire in the north

Unusually, this week’s news carried a story about a forest fire in Wester Ross, up in the north east Highlands.

While it’s usual to hear people speak of Scotland’s wet and miserable climate, especially if we’re not at the height of summer, it seem that this area has seen a long spell of dry weather, and when woodland there caught fire, the blaze spread rapidly, threatening not only to consume the wood, but also houses bordering the area.

31 firefighters from Aultbea, Gairloch, Kinlochewe, Torridon, Ullapool and Inverness were involved in tackling the blaze, and were helped in their efforts by some fortuitous rain. Highlands and Islands Fire and Rescue said the alarm was raised at 13:23 and that the blaze was extinguished by 21:50, with the crews managing to prevent the fire reaching any of the nearby homes.

Loss of the whole woodland had been feared, however it seems that the actual damage, although serious, is not as extensive as it might have been. Three years ago 25% of the wood was destroyed by hurricane force winds.