Firefighters remain at wildfire near Forres to dampen hotspots

Five fire appliances are at the scene to the east of Nairn.

By Chris Cromar

July 30 2024, 5:05 pm

Five fire appliances were sent to the scene. Image: Jasperimage.

Firefighters remain at a wildfire near the Moray town of Forres for a second day.

The blaze broke out at Culbin forest, six miles to the north of Forres, at around 2pm on Tuesday.

While the fire was extinguished at 7.43pm last night, fire officers returned to the forest this morning to dampen hotspots.

Culbin Forest fire. — The fire started this afternoon. Image: Jasperimage.

Culbin Forrest fire. — Police were at the scene. Image: Jasperimage.

A spokesperson for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) said: “We have one unit from Nairn and the wildfire unit from Inverness in attendance at Culbin Forest.

“Teams will be working in the area on hotspots and dampening down on any areas that require it.”

Five appliances were on the scene yesterday from 2.04pm onwards.

On Tuesday one crew was sent from nearby Forres, two from Nairn, a water carrier was brought in from Buckie and a wildfire unit from Inverness.

Public urged to ‘avoid’ area

In a social media post, Police Scotland said: “Members of the public are asked to avoid the area surrounding Culbin Woods, east of Nairn, due to an ongoing fire.”

Stretching from Nairn to Findhorn Bay, Culbin has been described as a “big forest” and is owned by Forestry and Land Scotland.

On the north side of the A96 between Nairn and Forres, people can walk into the forest from Nairn East Beach.