‘Asbestos’ inferno that plunged heart of city into lockdown
A HUGE fire yesterday ripped through a building on one of Scotland’s most famous streets, with properties evacuated and residents urged to stay indoors over asbestos fears.
More than 120 firefighters and 20 fire engines were at Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, to tackle the blaze, which raged in the roof space of a commercial premises.
Crews were called to the area at 8.18am as smoke filled the air across the city centre and the street was taped off by police. Flames could be seen coming from the roof of the building which houses Victoria’s nightclub and has shops at ground level. The Pavilion Theatre is behind it.
No injuries were reported but fire crews evacuated residents from nearby properties as a precaution.
Other neighbouring householders were asked to keep their windows closed and remain inside. An eyewitness said: ‘The smoke kept rising and rising and eventually covered most of the city centre.’
Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Assistant Chief Officer Lewis Ramsay said: ‘I cannot over-emphasise how dangerous this job is. We’ll be here for days.’ Praising his firefighters, he said: ‘They’ve done a fantastic job.’
Pavilion manager Iain Gordon said: ‘The current news is the Pavilion is safe and hopefully we will only suffer from smoke damage.’