A new seating area at Dundee’s urban beach constructed for COP26 was set on fire on Wednesday evening.
Emergency services rushed to the dramatic blaze on Dundee’s waterfront at around 7:45pm on Wednesday.
The bench was constructed by the Dundee Institute of Architects as part of the ongoing events for COP26.
It was created in partnership with Historic Environment Scotland to highlight traditional materials, as well as rising sea levels.
Onlookers reported seeing teenage boys on the scene at the time of the fire.
One eyewitness said: “It was a group of teenage boys, they were about 14 or 15 years old.
“I’ve no idea what they were doing, but I heard them shouting ‘the police are coming’ and they ran away.”
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service attended the scene and put out the blaze. However, the bench’s flammable thatched roof was scattered across the decking following the fire.
A spokesperson for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said: “We were called to a seating area on fire at Urban Beach in Dundee.
“We got the call at 19:45 and left at 19:58.
“There was one appliance in attendance.
“We requested the police who were still in attendance when we left.”
The fire appeared to be contained to the seating area.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We received report of a fire at the Riverside Esplanade area of Dundee around 7:50pm on Wednesday November 10.
“The fire was extinguished by Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.
“The fire is being treated as wilful and enquiries are ongoing.”
‘Wilful fire’
The COP26 installation by the Institute of Dundee Architects includes a tidal marker to illustrate projected sea levels in 2050.
Historic Environment Scotland had also planned to create a film about the sea level marker on the Dundee bench.
The new addition to the regenerated Dundee Waterfront was intended to provide a place for “quiet contemplation” and draw attention to the effects of climate change.
