This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2013/apr/02/firefighters-battle-control-highlands-blaze
The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| 'Massive' Highlands wildfire extinguished | 'Massive' Highlands wildfire extinguished |
| (about 1 month later) | |
| Firefighters have worked through the night to extinguish a huge grassland blaze in the Highlands. | Firefighters have worked through the night to extinguish a huge grassland blaze in the Highlands. |
| Crews were called to tackle the wildfire north of Fort William at about 4pm on Monday. | Crews were called to tackle the wildfire north of Fort William at about 4pm on Monday. |
| The blaze broke out on grassland and heath north of the B8004 and stretched for about three miles. No properties in the area were evacuated. | The blaze broke out on grassland and heath north of the B8004 and stretched for about three miles. No properties in the area were evacuated. |
| The wildfire was extinguished on Tuesday morning but crews remained to check for any hotspots, the Scottish fire and rescue service said. | The wildfire was extinguished on Tuesday morning but crews remained to check for any hotspots, the Scottish fire and rescue service said. |
| The Ross, Skye and Lochaber Liberal Democrat MP, Charles Kennedy, praised the efforts of the emergency services. "I have never witnessed anything quite on the scale of Monday's massive hill fire above Banavie and Corpach," he said. "If the initial reports are confirmed, then it is miraculous that there was no significant loss of property, far less worse. | The Ross, Skye and Lochaber Liberal Democrat MP, Charles Kennedy, praised the efforts of the emergency services. "I have never witnessed anything quite on the scale of Monday's massive hill fire above Banavie and Corpach," he said. "If the initial reports are confirmed, then it is miraculous that there was no significant loss of property, far less worse. |
| "The spate of such fires recently across the Highlands acts as a timely warning to us all. But most of all it makes us all profoundly grateful for the professional expertise and courage of our firefighters and the other emergency services. We are indebted to them all." | "The spate of such fires recently across the Highlands acts as a timely warning to us all. But most of all it makes us all profoundly grateful for the professional expertise and courage of our firefighters and the other emergency services. We are indebted to them all." |
| The fire service said the hill blaze involved thick heather and dead bracken. Landowners and farmers set off controlled fires at this time of year to burn off long grass and heather, usually to help improve grazing land. | The fire service said the hill blaze involved thick heather and dead bracken. Landowners and farmers set off controlled fires at this time of year to burn off long grass and heather, usually to help improve grazing land. |
| Meanwhile, firefighters were tackling another five wildfires in the Highlands and Islands area. A significant blaze was under way in Gairloch where crews were assessing the risk to property, while in Morar, near Mallaig, crews said they were making good progress in dealing with a heath and moorland fire. | Meanwhile, firefighters were tackling another five wildfires in the Highlands and Islands area. A significant blaze was under way in Gairloch where crews were assessing the risk to property, while in Morar, near Mallaig, crews said they were making good progress in dealing with a heath and moorland fire. |
| Fires were also burning in the hills around Glenfinnan and in Kishorn. A wildfire in Lochinver, Sutherland, was said to be under control. | Fires were also burning in the hills around Glenfinnan and in Kishorn. A wildfire in Lochinver, Sutherland, was said to be under control. |
| A spokesman for the fire service said: "Crews on site and staff at operations control Inverness continue to work tirelessly to deal with each of the incidents, whilst ensuring that cover is maintained to deal with other operational incidents across the Highlands and Islands area. | A spokesman for the fire service said: "Crews on site and staff at operations control Inverness continue to work tirelessly to deal with each of the incidents, whilst ensuring that cover is maintained to deal with other operational incidents across the Highlands and Islands area. |
| "Over the last week there have been 175 wildfire incidents and the service would like to thank their retained and whole-time staff who have worked around the clock to deal with these incidents. | "Over the last week there have been 175 wildfire incidents and the service would like to thank their retained and whole-time staff who have worked around the clock to deal with these incidents. |
| "We would also like to thank local employers who have released our retained crew members to deal with the incidents and maintain the safety of our local communities and local landowners and other agencies for their support." | "We would also like to thank local employers who have released our retained crew members to deal with the incidents and maintain the safety of our local communities and local landowners and other agencies for their support." |
| Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. | |
| Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. Enter your email address to subscribe. |