HOW COULD IT HAPPEN AGAIN?
As iconic art school is gutted by f ire a second time, a nation asks...
GLASGOW School of Art – one of Scotland’s most famous buildings and an architectural gem – may have to be demolished after a second fire in just four years left it a gutted shell.
At the height of the inferno on Friday night, 120 firefighters battled to save the landmark Mackintosh building.
Yesterday evening, smoke and flames could still be seen amid the charred remains of what was widely regarded as the world’s finest example of art nouveau architecture – making it too dangerous for investigators to begin probing the cause of the blaze.
However, experts predicted that the damage – described by the fire service as ‘extensive’ – was so severe that even the stone facade that had survived the first fire would need to be torn down.
Comedian Sir Billy Connolly was among shocked onlookers who gathered to gaze in disbelief at the destruction yesterday. He said he was ‘horrified’ by the sight. Artists, politicians and commentators
also expressed their dismay at the loss of a building designed by celebrated architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh, which has been described as ‘inspirational’ and ‘a masterpiece’.
Others questioned if enough had been done to protect it from fire, especially after a blaze in 2014 destroyed the west wing, including the world-famous wood-panelled library.
After a painstaking £25 million restoration project, which involved cash contributions from around the world – including from actors Brad Pitt and Peter Capaldi – the part of the building destroyed by the earlier fire had been due to reopen next year.
Yesterday, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon – who described the blaze as ‘devastating’ and ‘heartbreaking’ – warned that the latest fire could mean that the structure is beyond saving.
Praising the work of firefighters, Ms Sturgeon gave thanks that no lives had been lost in the ferocious blaze, which could be seen from up to ten miles away, and which also spread to neighbouring buildings, including the O2 ABC concert venue.
Ms Sturgeon said: ‘The fire has been a devastating blaze, much worse than the one that took hold of the Mackintosh building four years ago. The damage is severe and it is extensive.
‘Obviously there are assessments and discussions ongoing with the fire service and building control about the structure and its safety, and I think all of us hope the building can be saved, but it’s too early to draw any conclusions.
‘I’m not a firefighter, obviously, but looking at it, it’s a building that is just a shell. The external structure looks as if it is damaged.’
She added: ‘It’s hard to find the words to describe what it feels like to look at such an iconic building – not just an iconic building for Glasgow, in Scottish terms, but a building that has significance around the world.
‘My heart goes out to everybody associated with the art school but – and I think this is an important point – there was no loss of life last night, nobody was injured.
‘Sometimes I think we take that a bit too much for granted and that’s down to the speed of
‘The damage is severe and it is extensive’
response and skill of the firefighters that we’re not mourning loss of life today.’
Professor of architecture Alan Dunlop, a former GSA student, also expressed doubts about the building’s future.
He said: ‘I’m devastated. If there’s a positive to come out of it, it’s that nobody was hurt.
‘The GSA is not just important in Glasgow but internationally.
‘I have been up since 4am. You don’t have to be a student. Everybody who is interested in art or architecture will be devastated by this. From what I’ve seen it looks like World War II. Looking at it now I can’t imagine how it will be rescued.’
This year, Glasgow is hosting a series of events to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Mackintosh’s birth. But aerial footage of the structure which was arguably his greatest legacy revealed that the entire building – known to generations of art students as The Mack – has been gutted, leaving nothing more than a stone facade.
Yesterday, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) said the building had been ‘significantly damaged’ by the fire, which had ‘spread very rapidly’ and had ‘reached from the ground floor right through to the roof’.
Asked if the previous restoration work had been destroyed, SFRS deputy assistant chief officer Peter Heath said: ‘Given the extent of the fire, that would be a fair comment.’
He added that the blaze had caused a ‘devastating loss for Glasgow’, with firefighters dealing with a ‘sense of loss’ along with the city’s people.
Meanwhile, politicians have questioned how two such devastating fires could occur in the space of four years.
Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard said: ‘The images of the fire at the Glasgow School of Art and the ABC music venue are difficult to watch.
‘These are iconic buildings in Scotland’s biggest city, and buildings I have often visited. Hard questions will be asked as to why and how
the Mackintosh building has now suffered two serious fires within four years.’
Fire crews were called at 11.19pm on Friday evening after a blaze was spotted in the east wing. As dozens of people were evacuated from nearby buildings, 20 fire engines rushed to the scene, some from as far as Perth and West Lothian.
Jane Sutherland, chair of the local community council and an artist who graduated from the school in 1982, who also witnessed the 2014 fire from her flat nearby, said: ‘The fire was immense.
‘People were dodging fist-sized flaming embers.’
Hundreds of onlookers watched in horror as the art school was engulfed.
Pushan Bose, 34, first saw the fire from his flat opposite the building.
He said: ‘I saw the fire just after it had started, before it had spread, at around 11.45pm. It was in the middle of the structure, which is why I think it managed to spread throughout.’
Fine arts student Cameron McCracken, 22, who graduated from the School of Art on Friday and who watched the building go up in flames, said: ‘These two fires have bookmarked my experience – I started my degree when the first fire occurred, and I am ending it with a second fire.
‘Everyone in fine art graduated today. I feel very lucky to have seen the building returning to its prime, but there is no hope now. It seems a lot worse than last time and I am very emotional about it.’
Over an hour, the blaze spread from the ground floor to the roof and reached its peak between 12.15am and 1.30am, during which loud bangs could be heard as glass shattered and floors collapsed.
Megan-Kate McClement, 21, said: ‘I heard two really loud bangs, one happened at around 1.30am, and the next two minutes later. It was the glass arches shattering and crashing inwards, followed by the floors coming down.
‘I saw it all. It is just so, so sad. They made such an effort trying to restore it and we were so excited for it. It’s crushing.’
As the blaze raged, fire crews struggled to maintain enough water to keep on top of the blaze and had to run power hoses to draw a supply from the River Clyde.
The blaze in 2014 began when a projector ignited gases from expanding foam used in a student project. Details of where and how the fire began on Friday are not yet known – and are unlikely to be identified for several weeks.
Mackintosh began working on the school in 1895. It took 12 years to complete and the building’s beautiful library, which housed many rare and archival materials as well as original furniture and fittings, had recently undergone a restoration following the 2014 fire and was due to reopen next year. One construction worker at the site, who did not wish to be named, said yesterday: ‘Will the art school walls stand? I’d say it’s touch and go.
‘It’s the second fire in four years and there’s been water pouring over the building for hours.
‘Nobody will be able to get in for at least a week. The scaffolding still around the art school probably helped hold it up.
‘It’s weird that this has happened again – they were meant to have fireproofing. It’s a different set-up for a building site but it’s still weird that this happened.’
The fire also devastated one of Scotland’s most popular music venues, the O2 ABC. Spread over four floors, the former ABC cinema – originally built in 1875 – reopened as a music venue in 2005 and has since hosted major artists including Ed Sheeran and Clean Bandit.
As fire spread to the venue after 3am, the distinctive arched roof caved in.
Fire service chiefs declined to