Emergency crews were scrambled to an area of open land in Fife after a large area of grassland caught fire.
The incident happened in an area known as ‘Old Colts Field’ in Kincardine shortly before 7.30pm, with flames visible from nearby houses.
At its peak the fire covered a stretch of approximately 200 metres of land with a number of local residents reporting large amounts of smoke coming from the blaze.
One resident in Hawkshill Road adjacent to the land where the fire started, who asked not to be named, said the field was “well alight” by the time the emergency services arrived.
They said: “I just happened to look out of the widow and saw that the field across the railway line was well alight for some distance.
“It was quite a shock to look out and be confronted that amount of flames and it was a relief not to have it spread closer to homes.
“Luckily the fire crews were here quickly and seemed to get it under control a short time later and were here for about an hour damping down.”
A neighbour added: “Thankfully it didn’t spread any further. There was a lot of smoke and you can smell it right through the house.”
The cause of the blaze is still unknown but a number of witnesses reported hearing fireworks being set off in the area a short time before the fire took hold.
One eyewitness said: “I heard and saw fireworks being set off close to Old Colts Field around 15 minutes before the fire started.”
Another said: “I heard several bangs which sounded like fireworks going off but thought nothing of it until I later saw an alert on social media that the field close to the railway track and opposite the footpath was on fire.”
A spokesperson for Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said: “We received the alarm regarding a fire in open land in Kincardine at 7.25pm on Sunday, March 21.
“One appliance from Alloa Fife Station was despatched to the scene where firefighters found a large area of grassland alight.
“The crew gained entrance to the site and extinguished the fire before leaving the scene at 8.24pm.”
A spokesperson for Police Scotland said that officers had not been called to assist the fire service and confirmed that the incident had not been reported to them so no further action would be taken.