Between 50 and 60 people were involved on Thursday afternoon fighting a moorland fire near Kilpatrick. Described as having massive flames and only 10 yards away from Forestry Commission land it was not quite as serious as that suggests because the east wind was blowing the fire away from the trees and towards the sea.
The fire began around 2 pm on Thursday afternoon near the road as it climbs south of Kilpatrick. By the time it was at its height Lamlash and Brodick fire brigades plus the volunteer firemen were out. The Brodick Country Park Rangers had also been called and they brought along several visitors, volunteers from nearby also joined in.
Said John Orr, one of the rangers, "The wind was changing all the time. Flames were up to 12 feet high. It was heather moorland. A lot of wildlife suffered. Saw a couple of dead frogs. Shrews were flying out in all directions. Pipets' nests were burned." Said head forester Kerr Robertson, "If it hadn't been blowing towards the sea and downhill it could have been very serious."
The cause is not known although it was said that some walkers were seen leaving in a hurry. When we put this to Kerr he said "That has been stated. The police are looking into that."
One interesting aspect is that it was the first time the new Corriecravie fire appliance, featured on page 7, had been in use. Said leading volunteer fireman Angus Adamson when asked if it performed well, "It did. For the first time we were carrying water. In fact Brodick and Lamlash were using our water." This came about since, once Brodick and Lamlash had used up their water the Corriecravie appliance was able to shuttle back and forward to base for refills and then feed the bigger engines' hoses.
This is the second significant moorland fire this spring.
(The Arran Banner Saturday 21st May 1994, Page 2.)

The firemen of the Southend have a brand new shiny red appliance. Their sophisticated Volkswagen LTSO turbo diesel is replacing an old Ford Cortina P100 and is the first of its kind on the island A new station is to be built at Corriecravie to house the vehicle and as a base for the Corriecravie Volunteer Support Unit.
Station Officers Jim Clark and Jim Docherty of West Command HQ in Ayr were in Lamlash last Saturday to hand over the new £40,000 machine and put Leader Angus Adamson and his team through their paces. With the new VW as well as having a 150 gallon water tank, they will also now be equipped with breathing apparatus for the first time. So whilst still acting as a back-up unit to the retained teams from Brodick and Lamlash there may now be occasions when they get to an incident first and are more able and trained to fight fires.
The men of Lamlash will also be getting a new appliance this year and the station will be getting a face-lift, or more accurately, a roof-lift. Their old Bedford engine, although perfectly good, has been superseded and all their other stations in the Command now have Scanias. So if this Bedford broke down, any relief appliance sent from the mainland would be a Scania and Scanias are too high to fit in the Lamlash building. Hence the roof will be raised by one foot, and ultimately the Bedford will be replaced by a new Scania.
And looking ahead to 1996, Lamlash will be having a brand new purpose-built fire station. Plans are in hand to move the whole outfit a couple of hundred yards along the road to the field just over the Cordon bridge. As one fire officer put it, the people of Arran can sleep soundly in their beds, knowing that they have peace of mind with a fully trained and well equipped fire service.
<Photo> Left: The Corriecravie firefighters, ready for action. Left to right John Taylor, Grant McAllister, Alistair Linton, Angus Adamson, Charlie McAllister, Alastair Barr and Robin Cook.
<Photo> Below: The new 'appliance' shown alongside the Ford pickup which has served until now as the Corriecravie fire engine.
(The Arran Banner Saturday 21st May 1994, Page 7.)

Arran's newest fire station was officially opened on Tuesday night. The brand new building at Corriecravie was packed with guests, councillors, council officials, and of course firemen and their families. There was no room for the fire engine in its new home as the station was laid out with rows off chairs, top table and cold buffet. The formalities were conducted by the Firemaster, Assistant Firemaster and two Councillors with four speeches from the top table, followed by a blessing from local minister Rev Bill MacMillan.
Firemaster John Jameson unvieled the commerorative plaque and concluded the proceedings by telling the guests that this building belonged and to them, and encouraged them to use it as a community resource. Perhaps by way of coincidence this years Kilmory Hallowe'en party will be held in the new Fire Station on Friday instead of the village hall. As well as the local crew, there were firemen present from Blackwaterfoot, Lochranza, Lamlash and Brodick. We were also able to count at least three of the original Corriecravie team from 25 years ago at Lagg Hotel; Hugh Lennox, Arnot Reid and Davie Crossley. They all agreed that it was a huge step forward from their days.
<Photo> Corriecravie Fire Crew in their new station with mainland officers, Assistant Firemaster David Kennedy, Firemaster John Jameson and Assistant Firemaster John Martin. The crew are, l to r, leader Angus Adamson, Alastair Linton, Angela McNeish, Grant McAllister, Charlie McAllister, Matthew McNeish, John Taylor, Robin Cook and Alistair Barr.
<Photo> The Rev. Bill MacMillan blesses the Station.
(The Arran Banner Saturday 1st November 1997, Page 7.)

The first volunteer fire unit at Corriecravie was formed by Western Area Fire Brigade in 1972, and was stationed in what is now the Wishing Well Restaurant at the Lagg Hotel.

The original crew of 7 consisted of: -

The crew at October 1997 consisted of 9 males and 1 female: -

(From the Official opening programme 28th October,1997)

Information from Strathclyde Fire Brigade,  Davie Crossley, Angus Adamson and The Arran Banner.

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