Wildfire 'largely extinguished' after five-day fight

A large wildfire across a slice of Dumfries and Galloway has been "largely extinguished" after a five-day fight.

At its height dozens of firefighters, 10 appliances and two helicopters battled the blaze near the village of Mossdale.

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said it had spread across 15 square kilometres (six square miles) at "incredible speed".

One appliance remains at the scene checking for hotspots.

Emergency services were first called out at about 13:15 on Thursday as dry conditions and high winds saw the fire affect about 4,000 acres (1,500 hectares) of gorse, grassland and forestry.

Area commander Craig McGoldrick said crews had worked "tirelessly and professionally" to contain and extinguish it.

“This incident was a notable example of the incredible speed that wildfires can travel when fanned by the wind in dry conditions," he said.

“It also required a large amount of resources, from within Dumfries and Galloway and beyond, and we have called upon the resilience of our national service to tackle it.

“While the fire is largely extinguished, we will continue our presence in the area to monitor and deal with any remaining hotspots.”

The fire broke out in Dumfries and Galloway last Thursday afternoon

He also thanked everyone who had worked with them to deal with the incident.

“We have received invaluable support from our partners – this included two helicopters, from Skyhook and PDG, which worked alongside our crews to tackle the fire in difficult to reach areas," he said.

“In addition, continued support and generosity of the local community has also been humbling, and our sincere thanks goes to them.”