Blair Castle clock tower hit by fire

ONE of Scotland's major stately homes suffered serious damage last night when a fire ripped through part of Blair Castle.

Fire fighters were called to the 13th century castle, a popular tourist attraction near the village of Blair Atholl in Perthshire, shortly after 8:30pm, where they found the clock tower on fire.

The blaze was of such severity that it caused the top of the structure to collapse.

A spokeswoman for Tayside Fire and Rescue said: "At 8:35pm, we received numerous calls from both passers-by and staff members, one was from the caretaker, confirming that the clock tower was on fire.

"The clock tower consisted of two floors and a basement, but the roof and the upper floor collapsed into the first floor."

All of the castle's inhabitants had been evacuated by the time the fire fighters had arrived and there were no casualties.

Ten fire appliances attended the incident, including an aerial ladder, and officers used breathing apparatus to enter the property. The spokeswoman said the seat of the fire was believed to be in the basement.

An eye witness said: "A lot of local people were gathered up there to see what was happening. The roof had already completely collapsed when I arrived, but there's not much in the way of smoke damage outside, as it all seemed to be travelling out of through the hole where the roof was."

Despite the intensity of the fire, it was contained within the tower and none of the adjacent buildings were damaged. The fire brigade spokeswoman said no historical artefacts were affected.

Fire fighters were still at the scene at midnight trying to extinguish the fire at its source completely.

It is understood that the apartment belonging to head trustee of Blair Castle Sarah Troughton is close to the tower. No possible cause for the fire has been given, though it is understood that the basement housed a boiler.

A spokesman for Tayside Police said that the blaze was not suspicious, but that a joint investigation would be carried out with the fire brigade.

The castle is home of the Clan Murray family, who hold the title of Duke of Atholl - though the current duke, John Murray, lives in South Africa.

The castle also provides the garrison for the Atholl Highlanders, the private army of the Duke of Atholl, noted as the only legal private army in Europe.