A hotel in Perth has caught fire, prompting a major response from emergency services.
Fire and ambulance crews were called to County Place in the Fair City at around 5am following reports of a blaze breaking out at the New County Hotel. Roads have been cordoned off in the city centre to allow emergency services to tackle the blaze: Hospital Street, County Place, Leonard Street and New Row have been barricaded.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "Shortly before 5.10am on Monday, 2 January, 2023, police were called to a report of a fire at the New County Hotel, County Place, Perth. Emergency services are at the scene.
"A number of guests have been evacuated from the hotel. Members of the public are being asked to avoid the area.”
No details on any injuries were available at the time of publication. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said it could not comment at present, only confirming its attendance.
A Scottish Ambulance Service spokesperson “We received a call from Scottish Fire and Rescue Service of a fire at the New County Hotel in Fife at 05:05hrs. We responded with 21 resources including our Special Operation Resource Team, with our first resource on scene at 05:12hrs.”
A spokesperson for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said: “We are currently in attendance alongside emergency service partners at a commercial building fire at County Place in Perth. “Operations Control mobilised nine fire appliances to the scene after the alarm was raised at 5.02am on Monday, January 2.”
Images shared on social media showed a huge emergency service presence on County Place, including multiple fire engines and support vehicles as well as at least two ambulance incident response units and police vehicles.
Perth and Kinross Council has advised locals to stay clear of the area. The local authority said: "[The area is] closed due to an ongoing incident. Be aware that traffic in the surrounding area is also likely to be impacted as well as public transport routes. Please avoid the area if you can."
Local MSP and deputy first minister John Swinney said on Twitter: "Very concerned to hear this news and hope that everyone is safe. Grateful thanks, as ever, to the emergency services for their actions."
Eric Drysdale, a Perth city centre councillor, wrote on Facebook: "Please be aware this is a very serious incident. My thanks go to Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and Police Scotland for their response to this fire.
"All announcements regarding any confirmed casualties will be made by the emergency services. Please avoid the area today."
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