EMERGENCY services were called to deal with a ferocious fire in the hills above Greenock.

The blaze broke out on Old Largs Road, near Loch Thom, on Sunday night just after 10pm.

A spokesman for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) says a pile of rubbish was set alight but refused to comment on whether the blaze was deliberate.

Grass and rubbish fires have been on the rise across Inverclyde in recent weeks and months.

Emergency services personnel have also been attacked while attending 999 call-outs in Greenock and Gourock since the end of May and the start of June.

Officials say nobody was hurt as a result of the incident at the weekend.

A spokesman for SFRS said: they were alerted just after 10pm.

"Operations control mobilised a single fire engine to the scene, where firefighters extinguished the flames.

"There were no casualties.

"Crews left at 10.46pm after ensuring the area was made safe."

The blaze was caught on camera by a passer-by who was in the area at the time and spotted smoke and flames from a distance.

It is unclear what caused the fire.

Following a spate of deliberate blazes in Gourock over the bank holiday weekend at the end of May, Inverclyde's top firefighter issued a warning.

Graeme Binning, who is the local senior officer, said: "Deliberate fires waste not only emergency service time and resources but can result in serious consequences.

"It is therefore vital that everyone understands the danger their reckless actions pose not only to themselves, but to others too.

"We will always look to educate our communities on the dangers of setting deliberate fires."

Mr Binning's warning came after youths lobbed missiles at some of his staff during a call-out in Gourock.

A further incident took place in Killochend Drive, Greenock, last week.