A major incident has been declared by emergency services as they continue to tackle a wildfire which has been burning in the Cairngorms National Park for 10 days.
All residents of the village of Nethy Bridge have been evacuated as a precaution.
But a local resident told the BBC the wildfire should have been declared a major incident sooner and communication from authorities had been “pretty poor”.
The Scottish government said a fire break had been established around Nethy Bridge overnight and new fire breaks were being constructed.
First Minister John Swinney, who held a meeting of the Scottish government’s resilience committee early on Saturday, said additional police and fire service resources were being deployed to assist with the evacuation.
He said that it was “essential people avoid the affected areas.”
Swinney continued: “The wind has changed direction overnight, which means the track of the fire has altered once again and the threat to Nethy Bridge has reduced, for the moment at least.
“Ground and helicopter resources are being focused on the current path of the fire and new fire breaks constructed.”
Smoke from the wildfire can now be seen 59 miles away in Aberdeen following a change in wind direction.
Supt Judy Hill said weather conditions “experienced within the Cairngorms over the last 24 hours have added further complexities to this situation”.
She said the major incident had been declared and residents were evacuated after evidence suggested on Friday night that the fire was spreading towards the village.
