An Aberdeenshire fire station manager has vowed to take action against a rise in deliberate fires across the region.
Willie Chisholm spoke to councillors at a meeting of the Formartine Area Commitee yesterday and explained the work being done to tackle the problem.
A report presented to councillors ahead of the meeting advised that there had been a “dramatic increase” between April and June this year compared to during the same two-month period in other years.
There were just six deliberate fires reported in the Formartine area between April and June in 2014, but 17 reported during that spell this year.
Ellon councillor, Isobel Davidson, said it was “disappointing” to hear of the increases and asked what the fire service was doing to address the problem.
Mr Chisolm said: “We have held events across local schools to help us highlight the fact that when we attend incidents such as deliberate fires, it takes time away from serious incidents.
“It’s not always youth but we find it is a good opportunity to get into the area and speak to as many people about the situation as possible.”
Between April and June there were a total of 103 incidents in the region, which included the 17 deliberate fires, 45 false alarms and 21 accidental fires.
Mr Chisolm added: “There has been a reduction in accidental dwelling fires – the vast majority which are due to distractions when cooking – and this is the main area we are trying to address with our home safety visits.”
Future home visits are planned at sheltered housing complexes to help prevent accidental fires involving Formartine’s older population.
