PICTURES: Infamous Gruinard Island – once used for biological weapons testing – ablaze as 'apocalyptic' Wester Ross scene stuns eyewitnesses
DRAMATIC images from a fire which engulfed an infamous Wester Ross island emerged overnight on Saturday.
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service– which has hours earlier warned of a "very high" risk of wildfires across the country –yesterday confirmed that it had no involvement with the blaze at Gruinard Island.
At its closest point to the mainland, it is about 1km offshore. The beach at Gruinard Bay is a popular destination with visitors. The island can also be seen from parts of the A832, a route popular with visitors to Wester Ross.
One eyewitness spoke of the "apocalyptic" scene as flames lit the night sky around the area.
The SFRS had earlier flagged a very high risk of wildfires following a number of blazes in recent days.
It said the weather pattern over the next few days – dominated by high-pressure, variable winds and temperatures peaking at 17°C – increases the risk.
The warning lasts until Wednesday (March 30).
Accumulated dead grass, leaves, twigs and heather on the ground at this time of year dries quickly in light winds and, when ignited, acts as fuel which can spread wildfires over a wide area.
But a spokeswoman confirmed it had not been involved in any response to the Gruinard Island incident.
The cause of the inferno is as yet unclear.
Gruinard Island’s infamous past as a World War II biological weapons testing site that rendered it uninhabitable – and deadly – for decades was the subject of a recent TV documentary.
The island was taken over by UK government scientists from the MoD’s Porton Down during the war to carry out testing on sheep of a deadly strain of anthrax.
From 1942 onwards, people were forbidden to go onto the uninhabited island for fear of the spores they could inhale from the contaminated soil – spores which had the potential to remain fatally potent for decades.
Stern warning signs were erected on the island and the adjacent mainland and Gruinard was dubbed “The Island of Death” or “Anthrax Island”.