Heroic neighbours helped save a man from a devastating fire at his home in Dingwall.
The casualty was taken to hospital after being pulled to safety from the burning building in the town’s Cnoc Place.
He was last night recovering in Raigmore Hospital in Inverness where he was understood to be in a stable condition.
The fire service – which battled the blaze into the early hours of yesterday morning – said the semi-detached house was almost completely destroyed by fire and suffered extensive smoke damage.
Local resident Debbie Gow told how the injured man was spotted near the door of his burning house before neighbours came to the rescue.
She said: “His next door neighbour managed to get him and got him out into the garden.
“My husband went to go and help and they got him a bit further away from the house, just for safety.
“There wasn’t much they could do after that but wait for the fire and the ambulance to arrive.”
Another neighbour said: “The fire brigade were here most of the night.
“They were running their hoses away up the street and round the corner and working away down at the house.
“I didn’t hear what had happened to the man, I just hope it’s not too bad.
“The house looks in a bit of a state.”
Signs of the devastating fire were visible from the street yesterday, including a badly damaged armchair which had been removed from the property and left in the garden.
Every window and door was boarded up and the exterior of the house was badly blackened.
The fire service said the property was 80% destroyed by fire and 100% smoke damaged.
Firefighters from Dingwall, Beauly and Inverness attended at the scene overnight.
They were called just before 11.20pm and the last crews left the scene just before 5am.
A spokeswoman for the fire service confirmed one male casualty had been taken to hospital by the ambulance service.
A spokesman for the police said that the fire was not being treated as suspicious.