A total of six fire engines and one aerial appliance were mobilised to the hotel, near Dornoch, after the alarm was raised at 8.18pm on Monday, October 15.

Further resources were thereafter mobilised.

Two people were assisted to safety by Scottish Fire and Rescue Service crews and there were no casualties.

Firefighters then worked to extinguish the fire which had taken hold within the roof space of the four-storey building.

A single fire engine returned to the hotel at 8.20am this morning (Tuesday, October 16) and left the scene at 9am after ensuring the area remained safe.

Mark Loynd is the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service’s Group Manager for Highland.

He said: “I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the swift and professional response of our firefighters.

“This was a challenging incident at a famous and very historic building, but our crews responded effectively to consign the fire to one small area.

“I would also like to thank our teams in Operations Control and our partners whose assistance was invaluable in helping to protect the community.”