Firefighters forced to use pond water to fight blaze

Published on Wednesday 21 July 2010 15:46

FIREFIGHTERS trying to extinguish a fire which destroyed a £2 million mansion yesterday morning were forced to use water from a neighbour's garden pond to put out the flames.

Teams of firefighters from Strathclyde and Central Scotland Fire and Rescue Services raced to the blaze at Balauchan Lodge, in the wealthy Stirlingshire village of Mugdock, after both received numerous calls around 2am.

But on arrival at the burning two-storey house, they discovered the water pressure was too low at local hydrants. Scottish Water was unable to raise the pressure, so firefighters were forced to use water from a neighbour's pond instead.

A total of seven fire appliances and 36 firefighters from the two force areas were used to tackle the blaze at the property, which was unoccupied at the time.

The fire was put out after several hours but the house, understood to have been up for sale, was later described by locals as "destroyed".

A Central Scotland Fire and Rescue Service spokeswoman said: "It is a big property in a rural area. Firefighters tackled the blaze using three main jets throughout the morning.

"However, this was made more difficult because of difficulties in gaining access to an adequate water supply. However, they were able to use water from a very large pond in a neighbouring property."

She added: "The neighbours were aware of what was going on and were happy to let them take water from the pond."

Central Scotland Fire and Rescue Service investigators spent hours making the building safe to access ahead of an investigation into the cause of the fire.

The spokeswoman added: "It is still too early to say whether the fire started under suspicious circumstances. We are carrying out investigations in association with the police."