Gamekeepers say lessons must be learned
Scotland’s gamekeepers have urged Scottish Government officials to visit the ongoing wildfires in the Cairngorms saying lessons must be learned before it is too late.
Teams of gamekeepers from all over Scotland assisted the Fire Service through the night on Saturday and Sunday as three separate wildfires raged through the Cairngorms National Park, within a 10-20 mile radius north of Grantown-on-Spey.
Police Scotland have closed roads to protect the public and to allow firefighters to tackle the major blazes which are still ongoing.
‘Off the scale’
A Spokesman for the Scottish Gamekeepers Association (SGA) said that, had it not been for a round-the-clock effort from gamekeepers and land managers on Saturday evening, working in tandem with Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS), the two main larger fires would have joined, although that nightmare scenario remains a possibility.
Such a blaze would have completely overwhelmed the emergency effort, said firefighters on the ground, claiming it would have been ‘on a scale we have never seen before’.
It is understood the round-the-clock effort stopped a fire in the Lochindorb area before the wind changed and the flames took off in another direction.
Plea to Government and advisers
Now SGA officials have urged Scottish Government’s nature advisers, NatureScot, to visit the fire site to see, first hand, the scale of the operations required to attend major blazes and where mitigations must be considered.
Scotland’s nature body is soon to finalise new Scottish Parliament legislation which will make it much harder for gamekeepers, farmers and crofters to carry out controlled muirburn, which is proven to prevent the build-up of combustible fuel across the landscape.
“We need to have the Scottish Government and their advisers out now to see what is happening, while these fires are ongoing,” said a Spokesman for the SGA.
“There must be lessons learned before it is too late. We are about to introduce new legislation in Scotland which will severely restrict controlled muirburning while we are letting huge fuel loads build up across the country in planting schemes and rewilding areas. We have warned about this constantly and, exactly what we said would happen, is happening.
“It’s simple: if you control the fuel, it allows those fighting the fires to get a chance to catch it. This is becoming a danger to human life because firefighters are becoming so stretched dealing with wildfires that they don’t have the resources to attend other fires.
“The Fire Service have been brilliant, working closely with gamekeepers and land managers, allowing them to back-burn to prevent flare-ups. The team working has been great and the Police have really helped. But the Fire Service can’t be everywhere.
“At the moment, with the policies we have in Scotland, we are not protecting anything.”
Those tackling the wildfires reported that crews from Aberdeen were being relieved from staff from Forfar whilst Perthshire crews were also in attendance.
Those attending the fire on Monday (30th June) morning were warning there was a chance the two main fires could still conjoin after flames entered a large regeneration block after crossing the Ferness road.
