A lifeboat crew was called out to the Gare Loch over the weekend following reports of a boat on fire near Blairvadach Sailing Centre.

The Coastguard requested the immediate launch of the lifeboat just after 2pm on Saturday, October 8.

The RNLI crew arrived at the scene four minutes later but were forced to stand off due to the intensity of the fire.

With three gas bottles on board and intense smoke coming from the boat, a safety zone was placed around the vessel as it burned and settled in the water.

Crew members continued to stand off until it was declared safe for recalling at around 4pm.

The person who had been on board the vessel managed to get to the beach before the lifeboat arrived.

Howard Morrison, local operations manager, said: “The lifeboat crew are trained to save lives at sea and to respond to people in difficulty on the water.

“Fortunately there were no casualties and the crew, along with the other agencies, were able to contain the situation.”