A major wildfire at an Edinburgh city centre landmark has been extinguished.
Four fire engines went to the scene at Calton Hill when the alarm was raised at 3.15pm on Sunday, with firefighters spending ten hours dousing the blaze.
There were no reports of any injuries from the fire, which was finally put out at 1am this morning.
Four fire engines were sent to the scene of the blaze (Jamie McCormick/PA)
A Scottish Fire and Rescue Service spokeswoman said the blaze was caused by "a large gorse fire.”
It spread across much of the hill and smoke from the flames was visible for miles around.
Calton Hill is home to a number of historic monuments, including the National Monument which was inspired by the Parthenon in Athens.
It was meant to commemorate Scottish servicemen who died in the Napoleonic Wars but was never finished and only has twelve columns.
The Nelson Monument and the City Observatory are also situated on the hill.
Edinburgh Central MSP Angus Robertson tweeted: “Very worrying and dramatic scenes from central Edinburgh with fire on Calton Hill by the historic Royal High School building.
“Wishing all the best to the emergency services at the scene.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel