► Residents flee after fire breaks out in flats
The blaze which destroyed the interior of the Bliss Therapy salon in Stornoway was the second at the same premises within hours.
A shared lobby was destroyed by fire and there is severe smoke damage to both the salon and neighbouring maisonette following a blaze at 2.40am Friday.
At this stage it is unknown if both fires are linked
Fire crews were called out to the earlier fire in an outhouse immediately below the salon’s entrance around 6.26pm on Thursday.
One of the residents as well as a shop owner within the building dialled 999 when they discovered what is understood to be wood or a pallet on flames within the outhouse.
A water pipe running through the outhouse burst due to the fire.
Jacqueline Collier, the owner of the Wool 4 Ewe shop located below the fire damaged salon, said she smelt smoke on Thursday evening.
He husband Sean found the outhouse on fire and called the fire brigade.
She added: “I was anxious about leaving the shop overnight but there was no sign of smoke or fire when we left.”
Her husband Sean Collier injured his foot after stepping on a nail in debris at an fire just hours earlier at the same property.
Sean Collier said: “We were in the shop and smelt smoke and heard an alarm going off.
“An outhouse round the back was on fire – there was a lot of flames.
“We called the fire brigade and they put it out.
“We left here around 8.30pm and all seemed fine but then we got a message that the fire got up again at 2am in the morning.
“The police had smelt smoke outside and they called the fire service.”
He said a water pipe within the outhouse burst in the fire and he stood on a nail which pierced through his foot while accompanying a Scottish Water engineer making repairs.
Mr Collier said a mother and baby were amongst the occupants of the flats.
The Scottish Fire Service said two fire crews from Stornoway extinguished the earlier outhouse fire.
Two fires within hours at Stornoway tenement 3/10/14
Jacqueline Collier