Fresh warnings have been issued about gorse fires on the Moray coast after firefighters were called to a village for the second time within a month.
Homes were evacuated in Hopeman about two weeks ago as flames came within yards of being engulfed by the blaze.
Crews returned to the village on Sunday night to tackle a separate incident and remained there yesterday afternoon as the vegetation continued to smoulder.
It is understood the flames at Cove Bay, east of Hopeman Golf Club, were initially extinguished before they reignited again after being fanned by a sea breeze.
Last night, walkers enjoying the warm weather on the Moray Firth coast were warned to take extra precautions to avoid unintentionally sparking an emergency incident.
Paths in the area are known to be popular with people setting up camp fires during the summer months.
Emergency services are now considering setting up fire breaks within the gorse to create natural barriers to stop flames spreading large distances.
Yesterday’s incident stretched about 50 yards along the coast but flames had also climbed the hill at the beauty spot. However, the emergency in the village earlier this month spanned a distance of about 250 yards.
James Allan, chairman of Moray Council police and fire and rescue services committee, encouraged people enjoying the warm temperatures to remain safe.
He said: “When the weather is like this you always need to be a lot more careful because the grass is quite dry. It doesn’t take much for a fire to get out of control.
“There are a lot of barbecues on that part of the coast so it is important that people take extra precautions.”
Fire crews battled the latest incident by using beaters and by clearing gorse to contain the flames. Pumps were also used to spray water over the area.
A fire spokeswoman said: “We received the first call at 10.29pm on Sunday following reports of a wildfire at Cove Bay near Hopeman. Two appliances from Elgin were sent as well as a water carrier from Buckie. They left at 11.45pm.
“We were back in attendance at 10.20am on Monday and had six pumps there.”
