The Lothian and Borders Fire Department has warned revelers of the dangers of Bonfire Night, yet they have no intention of increasing the number of staff who will be on duty on 5 November.

Jimmy Burns, manager of the fire brigade’s Operations Department, told The Journal: "There is a greater level of danger if bonfires are unsupervised because people are often unaware of what is inside them. Gas cylinders in the middle of bonfires are often the cause of accidents, and we strongly advise people to attend properly managed events where risk assessments will have been undertaken."

However, despite the clear danger presented by bonfires and fireworks on Guy Fawkes Night, Mr Burns informed The Journal that “no further personnel will be placed on duty than on any other night.” Instead, local neighbourhood management institutions such as Community Concierge will be called upon to ensure that celebrations are conducted safely and responsibly.

Similarly, the Scottish Ambulance Service will not be increasing its number of on-call staff on 5 November, despite the health and safety implications of Bonfire Night.

A spokesman for the Ambulance Service said: "There will not be any more of our staff on duty on Guy Fawkes Night that there would normally be at any other time. Rather, we will be tactically positioning ambulances and paramedics in areas where we anticipate the lighting of fireworks and bonfires."

Hazel Leslie of the Lothian and Borders Police Safer Communities Department stated that similar action would be taken by the police force, adding: “The police force employs analysts to identify areas of the city that are considered to be hotspots for dangerous bonfires and firework use.”

However, Ms Leslie declined to comment on which areas of the city fall into this category.

The police, fire and ambulance services will be hoping to avoid a repeat of last year’s events on Arthur’s Seat, when a stray firework ignited a 100 square metre area of the hill, forcing over 1,500 people to be evacuated whilst a team of 20 firefighters battled to extinguish the blaze.

When asked which groups of society were deemed to be at the greatest risk in terms of safety on Bonfire Night, Ms Leslie responded: "Accidents are most likely to occur amongst events carried out by youth groups."