Wildfire: Residents 'upset, angry and frustrated' amid 'apocalyptic' scenes

Smoke rising near Nethy Bridge on Saturday during the wildfire in the Cairngorms National Park, which has been declared a major incident. PIC: Sandy McCook | Sandy McCook/PA Wire

Residents in Nethy Bridge are “upset, angry and frustrated” amid fire evacuation orders and “apocalyptic” palls of smoke.

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.

Sandy McCook, chairman of the Nethy Bridge and Vicinity Community Council

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 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.

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.

Smoke rising near Nethy Bridge on Friday during the wildfire in the Cairngorms National Park | Sandy McCook/PA Wire

“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.

“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.”

Another resident in Nethy Bridge criticised the emergency response as being like “closing the stable door now that the horse has bolted”.

READ MORE: Visitors urged to stay away from popular spots in the Cairngorms this weekend

Richard Eccles has been living in Nethy Bridge with his wife Patricia for 33 years, where they have run a guest house.

Speaking to the Press Association, they said police came to their house at around 10pm on Friday and presented them with three options – they could either stay, seek accommodation with friends or family elsewhere or go to emergency accommodation at the Macdonald hotel in Aviemore.

They said they decided to stay unless the fire gets considerably closer, which most residents in the village appear to have done.

READ MORE:Cairngorms wildfire: Evacuations continue as major incident declared

Mr Eccles said: “We’ve got a camper van and we’re all ready and set to go at a moment’s notice.”

He continued: “If it gets smoky, we’ll go.”

A wedding was due to take place at Castle Roy, which is near the village, but Mr Eccles said this has had to be cancelled as a result of the wildfire evacuations.

He said the Scottish Government’s response had been “poor” and a major incident should have been declared earlier, with military assistance brought in to tackle the fire before it spread.

Mr Eccles said: “It’s a bit like closing the stable door now that the horse has bolted.”

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.