THE Kincardine community rallied to the aid of elderly residents at Forth Bay Nursing Home after a major blaze broke out on Monday.

Countless volunteers and local businesses provided food and shelter not only to residents that were caught up in the frightening incident but also neighbours who were evacuated from their homes until late at night.

Around 60 firefighters and nine fire engines raced to the scene on Walker Street when the alarm was raised at 3.19pm.

The fire was then brought under control and extinguished by 6pm and there were no casualties.

Workmen Barry Jones and Scott Brough, from SGN, were among the first at the scene after noticing the blaze while passing through Kincardine.

Barry, from Dalgety Bay, told the Press: “We just saw smoke coming from the back of the building and jumped out the van.

“There wasn’t any time to think but after 10 minutes, I noticed there must have been about 30 people there who had carried all the residents out and we made sure everyone was accounted for.

“We went to the back to see if we could stop the fire but it was just too fierce and there was too much smoke. It must have been quite frightening for residents, there was lots of shouting.

“I can’t believe how many people were there, it was really good to see everyone helping out. The staff were brilliant too, they were very calm.”

At the scene on Tuesday morning, the smell of smoke still filled the air as the emergency services continued their investigations.

Elderly residents were made welcome at the Bridge Bar and Garvies, while other businesses such as Marco’s Kitchen and the Faodail restaurant supplied food and drink into the evening at the Kincardine Community Centre, which became an emergency centre.

Linda Brodie and Nancy McBeth, from the centre, said that a flood of donations had been sent from villagers and retail shops such as the Co-op, Tesco and Asda for the residents who had lost their belongings.

Susan Smith was visiting her mum when the blaze broke out, she said: “I had just popped out to get some eggs and when I came back there was flames everywhere.

“My mum is completely bed-ridden so I was really frightened but the staff had already got her out.

“Everybody chipped in, I’ve never seen a community pull together like that. It was joyful in a bad situation.

“Kincardine should be proud of itself.”

Euan Love, 17, was arriving back from school when he was told by the emergency services he wouldn’t be able to access his house in Silver Street. He said: “Me and a couple of others managed the traffic to help the police because there was so much for them to do.

“Even young children were giving their coats away to keep the elderly residents warm, it was fantastic.”

The majority of the care home residents have been relocated to a new care home in Glenrothes as officials make long-term plans to rehome.

Michael Kellet, director of Fife’s Health and Social Care Partnership, said: “We’d like to thank everyone who was involved with the recovery operation yesterday. The management committee members and volunteers of Kincardine Community Association, who run Kincardine Community Centre, were onsite well after 10pm supporting and catering for displaced residents. They were also ferrying teas, coffees and food to staff at the site.

“Staff from services across the council worked until late in the evening to make sure everyone was taken care of properly and I’d like to thank them all for the dedication they have shown. Due to everyone’s swift thinking, actions and planning we very quickly had arrangements in place to manage this challenging situation.”