A Peterhead street was cordoned off and evacuated early on Saturday after a “wilful fire” and gas leak.
Officers closed Kirk Street at around 1am following reports of a fire and leak at a local business.
Five fire appliances from Peterhead, Maud, and Aberdeen were dispatched to the scene.
Upon their arrival, teams secured the area before beginning work to contain the leak.
Nearby properties were evacuated as a precaution as teams dealt with the incident.
Investigation launched by police
Police have confirmed the incident is being treated as wilful as investigations get under way.
A police spokesman said: “Around 1am on Saturday February 4 police were called to assist Scottish Fire and Rescue Service at the scene of a fire in the Kirk Street area of Peterhead.
“A number of nearby properties were evacuated and the road was closed for an hour, until the fire was extinguished and gas leak was capped.
“The incident is being treated as wilful and inquiries are ongoing.”
The road was taped off for around an hour as firefighters extinguished the flames and capped the leak.
Onlookers reported seeing fire crews lifting nearby manholes.
Teams left the scene at 2.20am.
A spokesman for SGN said: “We were called to support the emergency services with a fire in the Kirk Street area of Peterhead in the early hours of Saturday, February 4, in our capacity as Scotland’s national gas emergency service.
“Our engineers carried out safety checks and made it safe by capping the gas supply to the property.”
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