The alarm was raised in the early hours of Friday, December 26 when firefighters were alerted to the blaze.
A church on a remote Scottish island has been destroyed by a fire, leaving the community in a state of “sadness and shock”.
The alarm was raised in the early hours of Friday, December 26 when firefighters from Tiree Community Fire Station were called to reports of a blaze at Tiree Baptist Church in Baugh on the Isle of Tiree.
Emergency crews raced to the scene at around 3:30am on Boxing Day where they met with one of the church buildings ablaze.
One appliance was sent to the scene of the fire, which was described by personnel as “well-developed”. Local police also rushed to the church grounds.
Firefighters battled the blaze for around seven hours before leaving the scene at 10am. Police Scotland confirmed that no-one was injured in the incident.
Photos taken at the scene and shared online show the charred remains of the building. The roof has completely vanished while the main structure of the building still stands, although the windows have been blackened.
The inside damage was not visible. It is understood the building had not long been renovated and freshly slated.
Enquiries are ongoing to establish the cause of the fire, the force added. Tiree Baptist Church minister Ruth Kelso shared news of the fire with parishioners in a post on social media on Friday afternoon.
She said: “We were sad and shocked to wake up to the news this morning that our lovely wee Baugh Church building had burnt down in the night.
“The building may be gone, but our church is still very much alive and we trust God for our future.”
Ms Kelso told church-goers to meet in An Talla on Sunday mornings going forward.
Locals flooded the comment section with their sorrow over what happened.
One penned: “As someone closely connected with this church throughout my life, I share the sense of shock and sadness at what has happened… however… let us remember that it is stone and mortar.”
They added: “The Baugh building has been renovated, and even rebuilt, on numerous occasions throughout its long life, and I have faith to believe that… it will serve its purpose even better in the days ahead.”
A second scribed: “Very sad news, the Church is a collection of lovely people who must be very upset by this tragedy as is the rest of the community.”
A third wrote: “It’s very sad about the church fire and a real shame to see it like that. It has a very strong congregation behind it so I’m sure it won’t be long before it is rebuilt.”
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We received a report of a fire at a church in the Baugh area of Tiree around 3.25am on Friday, 26 December, 2025.
“No-one was injured, and inquiries are ongoing to establish the cause of the fire.”
