A man has died following a devastating fire on Tomatin Road in Inverness.
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) were alerted to the blaze at 2.03am, and were still on the scene this morning.
People were evacuated from their homes by firefighters overnight, and shops in the Hilton area have been closed today.
Now, police have confirmed that a man has died “as a result of the fire”.
A spokesperson added: “Inquiries into the cause are ongoing.”
Tomatin Road remains closed but is expected to reopen shortly.
Fire crews put out blaze
Three appliances were in attendance at the scene, as well as a high-reach ALP.
A spokeswoman for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service in Inverness earlier described the fire as a “police incident”.
She said: “We have been in attendance at a fire since 2.03am.
“The fire is within a domestic property. We have three appliances in attendance.
“We have used a hose reel jet at the scene.
“The stop sign came through at 7.13am, and crews remain at the scene.”
Utopia Cafe has closed for the day, as its premises are underneath where the fire took place.
In a statement, it said: “We’re really sad to report that there was a fire in the same building as ours last night.
“The incident is ongoing with fire crews still on scene and the road is closed until further notice while investigations take place.
“We will update you in due course as soon as we know more information.”
Councillor Ian Brown, who represents Inverness Milburn ward, said: “It was a big shock in the early hours of this morning that there was a serious fire in Hilton.
“I understand that emergency services were on the scene early. People had to be evacuated from their homes, and householders were helped from the building.
“The houses are now uninhabitable and we are working with the people impacted to look at rehousing.
“As far as I am aware they were private homes above the shops.
“My thoughts go to everyone involved in the fire.
“All the shops are closed as police and fire investigators work at the scene.”
A spokesperson for the Scottish Ambulance Service said: “We received a call at 2.09am today to attend an incident on Tomatin Road, Inverness.
“We dispatched three ambulances and one special operations response team (SORT) to the scene.”