A FIRE in woods at John Muir Country Park is thought to have been started by a discarded cigarette.

Firefighters were called out to the park, near West Barns, on Monday.

The incident was highlighted by the East Lothian Council Countryside Rangers on social media.

They said: “Many thanks to Scottish Fire and Rescue Service who dealt with a fire at John Muir Country Park on Monday.

“The fire affected an area roughly 50m x 20m in the woodland.

“There is high risk of fire across East Lothian, meaning people should not be lighting fires, barbecues or dropping cigarettes.

“We suspect it was the latter that started this fire.”

A spokeswoman for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service confirmed they received a call at 3.20pm.

She said: “Operations Control mobilised four fire appliances and firefighters extinguished a fire affecting an area of woodland measuring approximately 60 metres x 30 metres.

“There were no reported casualties and crews left after ensuring the area was made safe.”