A traditional mill dating back almost 140 years has been destroyed by a huge fire.
The emergency services were called to the blaze at Montgarrie Mill, just north of Alford, on Wednesday night.
Firefighters were faced with a raging inferno when they arrived, and seven fire appliances – including a height vehicle to douse the flames from above – were sent to help bring the situation under control.
It is not believed that the mill, used by the Oatmeal of Alford company, had anyone inside at the time and no casualties have been reported.
Crews battled the blaze until just after 9am today, with nearly 50 firefighters taking part in the effort.
The blaze sent huge plumes of smoke into the sky above Alford, and flames could be seen billowing through all three floors of the property.
By the time it was brought under control much of the building, which dates back to 1882, was reduced to rubble.
Roofs at the premises completely collapsed, and firefighters spent further hours damping down the site in order to prevent any reignition amongst the ruins this morning.
Jason Dorey, who lives beside the building, said he and his family became aware of the devastating incident when they smelled smoke at 6pm on Wednesday.
When he went outside to look, he saw massive flames tearing through the old mill, which was one of the last of its kind in Scotland.
Mr Dorey said: “At first we thought that someone must have been having some sort of bonfire, so we went outside to have a look and saw that there was a serious fire going on at the mill.
“The fire brigade came really quickly, but it really escalated.
“It’s really sad, because this mill has got a lot of history to it, so it’s a total shame to see this happen.
“The fire brigade were here all through the night, and I saw some of the mill workers coming in for a look as well.”
Mr Dorey added: “The way that the wind was blowing means that certain parts of the building have managed to avoid the worst of the fire and have remained intact, but a lot of the building has just been burned down to the walls, it’s really just an empty shell.”
This afternoon, police and fire teams remained at the scene investigating the cause of the fire.
The Oatmeal of Alford company could not be reached for comment.
