Elgin bears brunt of 17 bin fires since March
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The fire and police services have launched a joint initiative to tackle a spate of bin fires in Elgin.
Since March there have been 17 bin fires in or around the town centre.
These include an incident a fortnight ago on North Street when a house was badly damaged after a fire was started in a communal bin shelter.
Another incident in June saw a number of businesses on Thunderton Place lose internet connection for several days after a bin fire spread to a phone cabinet.
Chay Ewing, the fire service's chief officer in the north east, said: "Deliberate fire-setting is reckless, selfish and can have devastating consequences if it spreads to nearby properties.
"We have issued a letter to businesses in Elgin with fire safety advice and our crews will continue to engage with them to reduce the risk.
"Practical steps they can take include securing bins in a safe place away from buildings and not overfilling them."
The bin fires within the town centre were typically in the early hours of the morning.
Chief Inspector Simon Reid, area commander for Moray said: "Our community policing team officers routinely carry out foot and mobile patrols of Elgin town centre.
"We work with partners to address any public concerns and adapt these patrols accordingly."
Meanwhile, Moray Council says it is exploring options to alter collection dates, as well as supplying locks for some types of bins.
Mike Neary, the local authority's waste manager, said: "We will take all the steps we can to support businesses and local emergency services to ensure the High Street is safe.
"It’s unfortunate that these irresponsible and dangerous actions may cause disruption, but we’ll communicate directly with any affected businesses and reassure them we're doing this in the interests of preventing damage to property and danger to life."
