A 91-year-old man died after a blaze gutted his rural north-east home on Saturday afternoon.
The fire took hold at about 11am at Phingask Cottages, about a mile west of Fraserburgh off the B9031 Macduff road.
Yesterday, the secluded property was boarded up while police kept watch.
It is understood to have been occupied by local man Jimmy Simpson, who neighbours described as private but as someone who would always exchange pleasantries.
He is thought to have died of smoke inhalation as three fire crews battled the blaze.
Local safety group chairman Brian Topping, a ward councillor for Fraserburgh, said the blaze highlighted the need for dedicated home safety officers.
He added: “It’s a tragedy.
“My heart and thoughts go out to his family, relatives and friends.
“We’ve got to wait for the emergency services to do their investigations but hopefully we can learn from that.
“Accidents can happen, but my view has always been that we should have mandatory home safety officers.
“We have road safety officers and targets to try and educate drivers and reduce accidents on our roads, but we don’t have that for the home.
“What a lot of people don’t realise is that there’s two-and-a-half to three times more accidents that happen at the home.
“A lot of people think that if you’re in your house you’re safe, but there certainly needs to be more done.”
David Rout, senior fire officer in Aberdeenshire and Moray, described the incident as “tragic”.
“Firstly, my thoughts are with the man’s family,” he said.
“The risks of toxic smoke affect both old and young but the reality is the effects of smoke inhalation are far more serious for older people.
“We will now investigate the cause of the fire with out partners at Police Scotland.”
Last night, a spokesman for the police described enquiries as “ongoing” and that there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the incident.