The circumstances of the New Year’s Day fire at Fisher’s Hotel in Pitlochry could hardly have been worse, a senior fire officer has said.
“You couldn’t design a worse set of circumstances – it was at 6am after a major celebration in a hotel that was full,” area manager Colin Grieve told councillors on the community safety committee.
The meeting on Wednesday heard that the fire crews were faced with a well-developed fire on the third floor and roof area of the building.
“Through arduous efforts from all those involved the fire was brought under control after nearly three hours,” he said.
“At the height of the fire, there were 10 fire engines plus additional support vehicles in attendance with around 55 firefighters on scene.”
“We are pleased to report there were no casualties as a result of the fire, considering the time of year and the number of customers sleeping in the hotel.
“This was down to the hard work of hotel staff, all the agencies in attendance and the community of Pitlochry providing assistance where required to help all those affected.”
A fire investigation carried out by the fire service in consultation with Police Scotland indicated an accidental cause.
During the month from mid-December to early January, the fire service attended four significant water rescue incidents on the Tay at Perth, the Earn at Forteviot, the Tay at Aberfeldy and the Almond at Glenalmond.