The First Minister has asked for military aid from the UK Government as residents in the highland village of Nethy Bridge are “angry and frustrated” amid evacuation orders due to a nearby wildfire.
More than 500 firefighters have been tackling the blaze which has raged in the Cairngorms National Park for the past 10 days and forced the evacuation of homes in the remote region.
First Minister John Swinney has said the blaze remains a “major and serious” incident but that they were seeing an “improved picture” on Saturday afternoon.
He said: “A request has been made today to the UK Government for military assistance in aerial support that can be used to supplement existing resources that are being deployed to tackle the Cairngorms wildfire and we await a response.”
The military is not currently conducting any aerial firefighting operations in the area.
Sandy McCook, chairman of the Nethy Bridge and Vicinity Community Council, said residents of the Cairngorms village could see large plumes of smoke from the wildfire on Friday before they were evacuated.
Speaking to the Press Association on Saturday, Mr McCook said: “Apocalyptic is the word for the pall of smoke that was on the go yesterday.”
The smoke has changed direction, and on Saturday at midday he said it was blowing towards Aberdeenshire and the North Sea, but the flames were still “very plain to see” from the outskirts of Nethy Bridge.
Evacuations and smoke advisories are still in place after Police Scotland declared a major incident as emergency services battled the wildfire in the Cairngorms National Park.
Emergency services previously said significantly changed weather conditions, including stronger winds, have contributed to the unpredictable behaviour of the blaze.
In an update on Saturday morning, Police Scotland said residents in a small area of properties north-west of Dorback Lodge (Lain Thatchan) had been evacuated as a precaution.
The wildfire burning in the Cairngorms National Park (RSPB Scotland/PA)PA MediaThe Scottish Government said a fire break around the village was established overnight, and new breaks are being constructed as Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) deploys additional resources.
Read More
A smoke advisory is also in place for Tomintoul, where residents have been advised to keep windows and doors closed due to smoke from the wildfire.
“If you are affected by smoke, stay indoors where possible, keep windows and doors closed, and avoid strenuous outdoor activity,” SFRS said.
The service also requested more heavy machinery, such as bulldozers, to help with the response.
“Operators who can provide suitable plant machinery to support the ongoing multi-agency response are asked to report to the Village Hall in Nethy Bridge,” SFRS said.
On the ground, Mr McCook said there was a major increase in firefighting units from the SFRS in and around the village, plus multiple wildfire response units.
The major wildfire started in heathland at Ryvoan Bothy, near Nethy Bridge (RSPB Scotland/PA)PA Media“I think a lot of people are running on adrenaline,” he said.
“A lot of people are upset, angry and frustrated at the ongoing situation because the Scottish Government said a week ago [on Wednesday] that they had enough resources to deal with it, and they said on Thursday that the fire was contained.
“My argument with that is, if you said the fire was contained and you had enough resources last Wednesday and Thursday, why are we still fighting it 10 days later and it’s still running out of control? It is still not controlled in any way shape or form.”
On Saturday, emergency services said there were nine fire appliances at the scene, supported by specialist wildfire resources.
SFRS said it has maintained a “significant operational response” since the wildfire was first reported on July 15.
More than 500 firefighters have tackled the blaze over the last 10 days, alongside specialist wildfire appliances, all-terrain vehicles, helicopter water-bombing operations and partner agencies.
The update came after First Minister John Swinney chaired a meeting of the Scottish Government’s Resilience Room (SGoRR) on Friday night.
More than 500 firefighters have tackled the blaze (RSPB Scotland/PA)PA MediaThe meeting was attended by several ministers and representatives from emergency services, including SFRS and Police Scotland.
On Friday, the First Minister told the Press Association: “I would obviously ask people in the region to follow all of the advice that is available and to respect the exclusion zone that’s been put in place.
“This is an incident that we felt was moving in a positive direction earlier this week, but with the change of weather circumstances – which is an illustration of just the scale and difficulty of the situation that we are managing – it has moved in the other direction.”
His comments came as smoke from the wildfire near Glenmore drifted as far as Aberdeen due to changing wind conditions.
The fire, which broke out near the village of Glenmore on Wednesday last week, led to residents and campsites being evacuated.
It covered about six square kilometres of heather and small trees at its height.
Evacuated residents are being directed to a dedicated respite centre at the Macdonald Aviemore Resort.
Members of the public are asked to avoid affected areas in the Cairngorms National Park. SFRS said the area remains unsafe due to firefighting operations, rapidly changing fire conditions and helicopter activity.