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Archives and former World War One drill hall destroyed in blaze

Laura Hamlet The building has been razed to the ground by the fire. There are small parts of the building still standing, including some gable ends. The ground is covered in charred timbers.Laura Hamlet
The hall in Coigach was destroyed in an early morning blaze

A former World War One drill hall which housed historic archives, including old photographs, has been destroyed in a fire.

The building in Coigach, north of Ullapool, had later served as a village hall before it was recently turned into a heritage centre.

The property was gutted by an early morning blaze on Monday.

Iain Muir, chairman of Coigach Heritage, said a "considerable amount" of archives had been lost.

The cause of the fire is not yet known.

It was built as a hall for training soldiers in World War One before being used as a village hall, café and piping school.

Muir said: "It's a real tragedy for the community to see it go up in flames.

"We've still to do a full inventory of all the archives that have been lost and those that have been saved."

He said that while many original photographs had been destroyed, it was fortunate they had been digitised and stored online.

Dorothy Miller Women sit on chairs inside the hall during a function held in the 1980s or 1990s.Dorothy Miller
The hall was an important focal point for the local community