DRAMATIC drone footage has emerged showing the moment a massive wildfire started spreading through a Scottish beauty spot near Glasgow.
Emergency crews were scrambled to Kilpatrick Hills this afternoon as the fire broke out.
TikTok: @drone_scape_scotlandA huge wildfire has broken out at a Scottish beauty spot[/caption]
TikTok: @drone_scape_scotlandSFRS crews raced to the scene shortly after 4pm today[/caption]
TikTok: @drone_scape_scotlandThick great smoke was seen billowing into the sky[/caption]
Fire crews descended on the area just north of Clydebank and Old Kilpatrick shortly after 4pm as the inferno took hold.
Four appliances are currently at the scene and firefighters have called it a “significant grass fire.”
Plumes of thick white and grey smoke were seen billowing into the sky as the fire quickly began spreading through the grass.
And now drone footage has emerged showing orange flames stretching for miles as they engulfed the hills.
An eyewitness also told Glasgow Live that the blaze appears to be “getting worse” by the minute and is “more alight” than it was when it first started.
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) confirmed that fire crews are currently in attendance.
A spokesperson said earlier today: “We received reports of a grass fire just over the Erskine Bridge at the village of Bowling on the Dumbarton side of the West Kilpatrick Hills at around 4:13pm on Thursday, March 20.
“Four appliances remain at the scene tackling what is now a fairly significant grass fire.”
It comes days after scientists warned that the danger of wildfires is increasing in Scotland, prompting firefighters to urge the public to be aware of the risks.
New figures show almost 80 per cent of large outdoor fires since 2010 were recorded between March and May.
On average, the SFRS attends 170 such incidents each year, and have now invested £1.6 million in specialist equipment and training to improve responses.
Just this week, the service has urged people in rural areas to be on alert with a ‘very high danger assessment’, coming into effect in parts of the country.
People living in the central and south-west of Scotland are to exercise caution over the ‘very high’ alert until Wednesday.
The same level is also applies on all low-lying areas on Thursday before being limited to the central Highlands on Friday.
However, on Saturday experts warn the risk is “extreme” for all low-lying areas across the country.
Six common causes of wildfires
UNATTENDED FLAMES Includes BBQs, campfires and bonfires left unattended or not extinguished. a small spark can ignite dry leaves leading to a fire.
GLASS BOTTLES Sunlight shining through a bottle can act like a magnifying glass, focusing heat and igniting dry materials nearby.
HOT & DRY WEATHER Prolonged periods of hot, dry weather create a tinderbox environment, where even a small spark can easily ignite a wildfire.
DROPPED CIGARETTE Even a seemingly extinguished cigarette can reignite and spark a fire in dry conditions.
COLD, DRY AND SUNNY WEATHER Believe it or not, cold, dry days with strong sun can be risky. The combination of low humidity and strong winds can quickly dry out vegetation and fuel wildfires.
CONTROLLED BURNS GONE WRONG Planned burns are sometimes used to manage land, but they can spiral out of control if not done properly.
And while spring has traditionally been the peak for outdoor infernos, it’s feared that summer will soon become a hotspot too.
Professor Robin Pakeman from The James Hutton Institute said: “The projections are pointing for warmer, drier summers.
“We might see an increase in summer fires, which tend to be worse than the spring fires.”
Plant ecologist Professor Pakeman added: “It does seem to be becoming more common. They can move quite quickly, and fairly scarily. And in recent years we’ve had some really quite big ones.
“Typically it’ll burn grass fields around houses and farms then peters out when it gets there.
2So far we’ve been lucky and we’ve not lost anyone. But you can imagine a situation where somebody’s in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service describes wildfires as ‘large, uncontrolled outdoor fires exceeding 1,000 square metres of burned area on appropriate land types’.
TikTok: @drone_scape_scotlandDront footage shows ribbons of orange flames engulfing the hills[/caption]
TikTok: @drone_scape_scotlandFirefighters have called it a ‘significant grass fire’[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
