North-east firefighters return from call-out… And find their own station on fire

Firefighters returning from a call-out in Aberdeen had to take action to tackle a blaze somewhere completely unexpected – at their own station.

Nearly a dozen Ellon firefighters sprang into action after discovering the blaze on the roof at their base on Union Street.

It is thought the small fire was sparked by work to re-tar the roof of the building.

The crew saw smoke billowing from the roof on their return to the station at 2pm.

The Oldmeldrum team was called out to the station as a precaution but the fire had been extinguished by the time they arrived.

Local senior officer for the fire and rescue service, David Rout, said: “As part of a refurbishment of all our stations in the north of Scotland, contractors were appointed to carry out repairs to the roof of our fire station at Ellon.

“A minor fire was inadvertently caused by these construction works at around 2pm.

“Firefighters quickly brought the fire under control and had it extinguished in under five minutes.

“Roof repairs were carried out and the incident has not affected our ability to serve the public. The local community should not be concerned.”