A blaze that had taken hold near an observatory in East Ayrshire has "extensively damaged" the building, emergency services said.
The Dark Sky Observatory in Dalmellington was partly destroyed in a fire in the early hours of Wednesday morning, our sister title, the Cumnock Chronicle, reported.
Authorities are now treating the blaze as suspicious and have launched an investigation.
Emergency services were alerted at 00.46am and worked throughout the day to put out the flames but no casualties have been reported.
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Police are now appealing for information on the fire at the observatory, saying the building is 'extensively damaged'.
Cops are treating the circumstances as suspicious and a joint investigation between Police Scotland and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service will be carried out to establish the exact cause of the fire.
Detective Constable Steven Grey from Kilmarnock CID said: “The observatory is run by a charity organisation and the financial impact and damage caused is extremely significant.
“It is vital we establish the full circumstances surrounding what happened and I am appealing to anyone with information to come forward.
“The observatory is in a remote location and I would like to speak to anyone who may have been in the area on Tuesday night, into Wednesday morning. I would also urge any motorists with dash-cams who were travelling through at the time to please check their footage in case they have captured anything which could be of relevance.
“Anyone with information is asked to contact Police Scotland through 101, quoting incident number 0293 of Wednesday, 23 June. Alternatively you can call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.”
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A Scottish Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson said: “We were alerted at 00.46am on Wednesday, June 23 to reports of a fire in the open affecting a wooden structure near Craigengillan Estate, Dalmellington.
“Operations Control mobilised four appliances to the scene, where crews remain.
“There are no reported casualties.”
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