Achosnich Fire, the Aftermath

Some idea of the huge task faced by firemen over the last twenty-four hours can be obtained from this picture by Stewart Pote of firemen damping down this morning. They were fighting a fire in one of the more inaccessible areas of the peninsula, across a steep and broken terrain.

By this time the fire had died back but was still burning in three places, two of them close to the built-up areas of Portuairk and Achnaha.

This picture shows the scene in Stewart Pote's images from last night, Lochan na Crannaig; the way the fire has been contained on the east side of the road can clearly be seen.

While there were no human casualties, wildlife has suffered - this adder obviously died a horrible death. But it could have been very different. Members of Kilchoan's Fire team have described how, had they not intervened at an early point, three houses could have been lost. As it was, the occupants had to be evacuated and, had the fire crossed the Kilchoan-Portuairk road, they could have seen The Sonachan Hotel at serious risk.

Several people have described how fiercely the fire burned. With a strong, constantly shifting wind, the movement of the fire front was highly unpredictable, and when it caught vegetation in confined spaces, such as in some of the narrow, steep glens, the flames were explosive. One senior member of the Kilchoan team felt they had been lucky not to suffer casualties amongst their number.

Fire teams were seen leaving Kilchoan just before two this afternoon, almost 24 hours after the initial outbreak. This is third serious fire we've had out here in the last two months. The community is very grateful for the help of all the teams who came in, but is thankful that we have such a dedicated and effective team out here on West Ardnamurchan. Recent events have emphasised that a situation must never arise where we are threatened with its loss.

Top photo thanks to Stewart Pote.

Photo of adder thanks to Kilchoan Early Bird.