Firefighters continue to tackle wildfire at iconic Arthur’s Seat in Edinburgh
Smoke can be seen for miles across the Scottish city
Firefighters are continuing to battle a blaze on the iconic Arthur’s Seat in Edinburgh.
Smoke can be seen billowing into the sky from the ongoing fire at the landmark hill, an extinct volcano and beauty spot located to the south-east of the city centre.
The fire was reported at about 4.05pm on Sunday, according to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS).
The service has four appliances and specialist resources at the scene, where they are continuing to battle the fire. No casualties have been reported.
Arthur's Seat, named after King Arthur, is situated at Holyrood Park, which overlooks the Scottish Parliament.
Reports have suggested people were seen fleeing the area as the flames spread.
An eyewitness told Edinburgh Live: “There is a major wildfire on Arthur's Seat which is spreading rapidly. People are running down the face of the hill to get away from it and smoke is spreading really fast."
Another frightened witness said he watched as the flames spread while he made his way down the hill.
Nick Brice, from Brighton, told BBC Scotland News: "We could see this little plume of smoke on the ridge at the far side and it just got bigger and bigger.
"All of a sudden we could see these flames starting to come up and people noticed it spreading fast. The smoke started to really build and then these flames started to cover the ridge and we realised the wind was blowing it right towards us.
"We had to get down to the road fast because it was going to come across the whole area."
Mr Brice said he urged people he passed who were still going up the hill to turn around. He added: "Now the whole hillside is covered in flames and smoke coming down over the path we walked."
An SFRS spokesperson said: "We were alerted at 4.05pm on Sunday, August 10 to reports of a fire in the open at Arthur's Seat, Edinburgh.
"Operations control mobilised four fire appliances and specialist resources to the area where firefighters are working to extinguish a fire affecting a large area of gorse.
"There are no reported casualties at this time and crews remain at the scene."
Arthur's Seat is a short distance from the Scottish capital’s historic Old Town in Holyrood Park and is popular with tourists for hikes.
Edinburgh is particularly busy this month as visitors have flocked to the city for annual festivals such as the Fringe.
Oasis fans also descended on the Scottish capital this past weekend as the band put on two nights of shows at Murrayfield Stadium.
The blaze comes after Scotland has suffered days of wildfires this summer.
Earlier in July, parts of the north of the country were hit by wildfires on a “vast scale” which burned for several days, prompting a police investigation.
And from Monday parts of the UK are set to see another heatwave, with temperatures set to climb as high as 34C by Tuesday. The UK Health Security Agency has issued a yellow heat health alert across some parts of England.
A similar fire at Arthur's Seat broke out in 2019 and the fire service spent eight hours battling the affected area of about 800 square metres.