Scotland’s tragic record of high-rise fires

IT was the tower block tragedy that was supposed to change everything.

In 1999, external cladding was blamed when a fire at Garnock Court in Irvine spread to other floors. A committee of MPs probed the blaze and set down new safety standards.

But fires in tower blocks have continued – sometimes spreading from floor to floor. In the wake of last week’s tragedy in London, Scottish high-rise residents have expressed increasing concern about the safety of their homes.

Here we examine the history of Scotland’s high-rises, looking at the Irvine fire and two more recent cases, the questions they raised and the human cost that followed from them.