Appeal after fire in St Andrews dunes during ‘high risk’ alert
A warning has been issued after a fire was lit in dunes on a Fife beach when a high risk wildfire alert was in place.
The incident happened at West Sands in St Andrews, and, had it taken hold it could have affected the boardwalks and cafe.
Enviromental conservation group, West Sands Ranger Service, has appealed for visitors to heed warnings and not light fires.
In an update on Facebook, it took the culprits to task saying the wildfire alert - issued by the Scottish Fire and Rescuer service at the weekend - “doesn’t seem to matter to some.”
It said: “The dangers of fires in the dry dunes is extremely high, if this fire took hold and the service hadn’t attended it could have affected the boardwalks and the cafe.
“We hope this behaviour stops as it’s not helpful to our dunes, the grasses will recover eventually, but our breeding birds will not.”
The ranger service urged people to contact them if they see someone lighting a fire - “even if we are not on duty, we will have an idea of where the fire was and check the following morning” - and call the fire service.
“We have always accepted small attended beach fires but NOT in the dunes or grass areas and NOT during fire warnings anywhere,” it said. “Thanks for those who reported this fire directly to the service - you are most appreciated.”