A 54-year-old man has died after a serious road traffic collision which closed part of the main road on Skye yesterday.
Four vehicles were involved in the incident which happened at 8.45am around two miles north of Sligachan on a windy patch of the A87.
The man, named locally as Ewen Mackay, was driving a white Ford van. Another male from the same vehicle was taken by air ambulance to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Glasgow. His injuries were described as serious.
Road Policing Sergeant Ewan Calder said: “Our thoughts at this time are very much with the family and friends of the victim of this collision.
“I would also extend our thanks to the public for their patience while the road has been closed.
“Our inquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstances and I would ask anyone with information who has not yet spoken to an officer to get in touch as soon as possible.”
A white Audi Q7, a blue Mercedes C-class and a silver Vauxhall van were also involved in the collision.
The crash happened as many islanders and visitors travelled to celebrate the annual Highland Games event in Portree, typically Skye’s busiest day of the year.
Organisers were forced to delay the start of the event because motorists on their way there had to travel along a route diversion.
However, that route was also later inaccessible due to a bus getting stuck and blocking the road later in the afternoon.
A spokeswoman for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service confirmed three crews, from Broadford, Portree and Dunvegan attended the fatal crash scene after receiving an initial call at 8.50am.
A Scottish Ambulance Service spokeswoman said: “We received a call at 0845 hours to attend a road traffic collision on the A87 in Skye. We dispatched three ambulances and two air ambulances to the scene.”
Local councillor John Gordon said: “It’s a sad day on one of the most popular and busiest days on Skye.
“My thoughts and prayers are with the family of the man killed and those injured in the collision.
“The emergency services have done a fantastic job, both at the scene of the accident and in dealing with the tailbacks generated around the north end with the increase in traffic on these roads.”