A fire which threatened to engulf trees near Stornoway golf course late on Monday night (22 May) is being investigated.

Scottish Fire and Rescue Service were alerted at 10.30pm on Monday that an area of the Castle Grounds close to the course was alight, despatching three appliances and teams from Stornoway and Shawbost to the area.

Also attending were coastguard rescue personnel and police officers, with firefighters saying that an area of scrubland measuring about 70 metres by 50 metres was alight, with whin bushes and wooden pallets burning.

The blaze lit up the night sky and was clearly visible to town residents.

Firefighters said that their immediate major concern was to prevent the fire from spreading into trees, with potentially damaging environmental consequences.

Concentrated jets and firefighting meant the conflagration was within just 15 feet of a large plantation connecting directly to the main road and properties at Marybank.

A spokesperson for the Stornoway Trust said: “Fortunately, last night’s fire was put out by the local fire service. Our grateful thanks to them for their swift response, before it could spread to nearby trees. The damage done is, nonetheless, a sad sight.”

Officers and crews were stood down at about midnight. An SFRS spokesperson today asked people to be extra careful using naked flame, especially in the current dry and breezy conditions.

The pictures show the flames at their height as seen from the war memorial (Ally H Macleod) and charred land and debris left behind the next day (Stornoway Trust).