Residents 'upset and angry' over Cairngorms wildfire evacuation orders

Residents are "upset, angry and frustrated" over evacuation orders in a Highlands village and smoke from a nearby wildfire that has been called "apocalyptic".

For the past 10 days, a blaze has raged in the Cairngorms National Park and forced the evacuation of some homes in the area.

Police Scotland has declared a major incident as more than 500 firefighters have been tackling the blaze, alongside specialist wildfire appliances, all-terrain vehicles, helicopter water-bombing operations and partner agencies.

It comes as Scottish First Minister John Swinney has asked for military aerial support from the UK government and said the blaze remains a "major and serious" incident but that there was an "improved picture" on Saturday afternoon.

There has been a compulsory evacuation for parts of the Cairngorms village of Nethy Bridge, according to Sandy McCook, chairman of the Nethy Bridge and Vicinity Community Council.

Residents could see large plumes of smoke from the wildfire on Friday before they were evacuated, he added.

Mr McCook told Sky News that residents "feel completely let down by the Scottish government who had dithered".

He said: "The village is a very sombre place at the moment, with everybody still on edge. Everybody is still worried. There have been tears of despair, tears of anger, tears of frustration in the village."

He also said: "A lot of people are upset, angry and frustrated at the ongoing situation because the Scottish government said a week ago [on Wednesday] that they had enough resources to deal with it, and they said on Thursday that the fire was contained.

"My argument with that is, if you said the fire was contained and you had enough resources last Wednesday and Thursday, why are we still fighting it 10 days later and it's still running out of control? It is still not controlled in any way shape or form."

Mr McCook said: "Apocalyptic is the word for the pall of smoke that was on the go yesterday."

The smoke has changed direction, and on Saturday at midday he said it was blowing towards Aberdeenshire and the North Sea, but the flames were still "very plain to see" from the outskirts of Nethy Bridge.

Emergency services previously said significantly changed weather conditions, including stronger winds, have contributed to the unpredictable behaviour of the blaze.

Scottish justice secretary Neil Gray told Sky News: "We've had helicopters available throughout the course of this week. We have two available today and we're expecting that to increase tomorrow. Of course we keep under review our response to the ever-growing threat of wildfires and having aerial support is part of that tactical response."

In an update on Saturday morning, Police Scotland said residents in a small area of properties north-west of Dorback Lodge (Lain Thatchan) had been evacuated as a precaution.

Read more from Sky News:
Fourth heatwave on the way for UK
Teenage boys arrested on suspicion of murder

The Scottish government said a fire break around the village was established overnight, and new breaks are being constructed as Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) deploys additional resources.

A smoke advisory is also in place for Tomintoul, where residents have been advised to keep windows and doors shut due to smoke from the wildfire.

SFRS said it has maintained a "significant operational response" since the wildfire was first reported on 15 July.

The fire broke out near the village of Glenmore on Wednesday last week and covered about six square kilometres of heather and small trees at its height.

(c) Sky News 2026: Residents 'upset and angry' over Cairngorms wildfire evacuation orders