Glencoe fire: Ski resort closed after base station 'almost completely' destroyed

The interior of the base station restaurant was extensively damaged

The Glencoe Mountain ski resort remains closed after a Christmas Day fire "almost completely destroyed" its base station restaurant.

The resort said all lessons and accommodation bookings for Boxing Day were cancelled as the lodges were without power.

Several fire crews tackled the blaze which broke out at about 02:00 but the wooden building was devastated.

The resort said it hoped to reopen for snowboarding and skiing on Friday.

Managing director Andy Meldrum said the fire burned for several hours before the alarm was raised because it was the only day of the year the resort is closed.

He said: "That was a good thing because it meant nobody could get injured but it was a bad thing because the alarm wasn't heard for four hours

"The fire burned away for four hours and then another hour before the fire brigade came."

Firefighters took water from a nearby burn to help douse the flames

CCTV images recorded inside building showed smoke building up in the counter area before fire took hold and engulfed the building.

Mr Meldrum said the resort had received many messages of support and offers of help, but it was now waiting for decisions from insurers before making plans to repair the damage.

In the meantime, he said he hoped the centre would be open for business again on Friday.

"We'll keep skiing. We always keep going here. We plan to re-open tomorrow," he said.

"The chairlifts are unaffected, the cafe on the hill is unaffected, we've got a second ski hire building that's unaffected and ski school will still be able to operate.

"We plan to keep going - we'll find a patch around the cafe, whether it's bringing in a temporary cabin, we'll find a way to make it work."

The building that housed the cafe is considered a "write off" according to the centre's managing director

Located at the base of the chairlift the cafe offers impressive views of Buachaille Etive Mor through its panoramic windows.

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said it sent eight appliances to the isolated resort on Rannoch Moor, close to the A82 at Ballachulish.

Firefighters used water from a nearby burn to douse the flames and had to remove gas cylinders from the rear of the premises.

The cause of the fire has yet to be determined.