Firefighters battled a blaze at an Aberdeenshire primary school in the early hours of this morning.
The alarm was raised at 3am and six fire appliances headed to Meldrum Primary School in Oldmeldrum.
Forty-five firefighters wearing breathing apparatus managed to bring the blaze under control by 4.45am using jets. The crews left the scene just before 6am.
Aberdeenshire Council announced on their website the school will be closed today following the fire.
The local authority also tweeted: “Meldrum School has been closed today following a fire over night which has been contained to a ground floor toilet block and small classroom area. This will be fully investigated today and the school will provide updates to parents, carers and teachers during the day.”
A police spokeswoman said they were informed about the incident from the fire service and were there to support.
David Rout, local senior officer for Aberdeenshire and Moray, tweeted this image this morning.
Attended fire at Oldmeldrum primary school in early hours @fire_scot crews did excellent job in stopping fire spread from serious fire. Keeping communities safe. Thanks @NorthEPolice @Scotambservice pic.twitter.com/GqOfob61YS
— David Rout (@DavidRout_LSO) 13 December 2017
David Farries, the deputy assistant chief officer in the Scottish Fire and Rescue and head of service delivery for the north of Scotland, replied congratulating the crews who attended for “limiting the damage”.
He said it had “the potential to be devastating for the Oldmeldrum community and Aberdeenshire”.
And Jim Savege, chief executive of Aberdeenshire Council, also thanked the crews for their “excellent work in containing the damage to our Aberdeenshire school.”
He added: “Glad that everyone is ok. School closed for the day and work underway to sort out school provision asap.”
