Edinburgh's Princes Street could reopen by end of August after historic building fire

Edinburgh’s Princes Street could fully reopen by the end of the month following a fire at a historic department store.

A building at the site of the old Debenhams department store suffered significant damage in a blaze which broke out around 3am on Thursday, July 9.

Around 50 firefighters worked to contain the fire to the affected site and prevent its spread to neighbouring buildings.

The blaze was safely extinguished, and the City of Edinburgh Council confirmed that Princes Street, a main thoroughfare in the city, was to remain partially closed into August.

The street has been closed to all vehicles and pedestrians between Frederick Street and South Charlotte Street, with diversions in place, with buses diverted and tram services restricted.

Work has been ongoing to make the building safe while preserving its historic features as far as possible, the local authority said.

The council said about 40% of the steel beams needed to make the façade safe were now in place.

In addition, the eastern gable has been secured, an operation which involved reducing its height by nearly 7ft (2m) and supporting it with scaffolding.

Unsafe bricks and stonework – some of it weighing as much as 850kg (0.85 tonne) – has been lowered by crane and stored on site for reuse.

At a summit of affected businesses, community and heritage groups, council leader Jane Meagher told them that, weather permitting, the area could be secured within weeks.

“We’ve been working tirelessly to make sure Princes Street can fully reopen and I’m reassured by the progress being made”, she said.

“It goes without saying that we want to do this as soon as possible – but only when it is safe to do so.

“I want to reiterate just how complicated, hazardous and challenging this work is – and it was helpful to be able to share more of this detail during, what was, a very positive and constructive meeting with local business and community representatives last night.

“I was extremely grateful to all those who attended and gave us their feedback – which I committed to taking on board, either immediately or as part of our lessons learned exercise that will follow. I also welcomed the views of Edinburgh World Heritage and the Scottish Architectural Society who spoke in praise of the steps we’re taking to preserve an important part of our city’s heritage.

“Clearly, the resulting disruption continues to have a significant effect on businesses, particularly on the north end of the tram route, and last night we outlined our plans for a communications campaign to promote Leith, the Shore and Newhaven – and everything all they have to offer for our residents and visitors.

“This is being developed very much in partnership with the businesses and communities themselves – and we hope it will encourage people to visit businesses in the area well into the future.

“What also came across strongly last night was the effect this is having on our residents who are struggling to get to work, meet commitments or make appointments. I want to put on record again my thanks for your patience and understanding and to reiterate my determination to bring this disruption to an end as soon as it is safe to do so.

“In the meantime, I want to give special thanks to Lothian Buses, particularly their drivers, for their support in keeping the city moving.”

Last week, the Scottish Government pledged £5m of support to help with the recovery following the fire.

The meeting outlined that some of this money would be channelled into a communications campaign to promote businesses and communities most affected by the disruption, using “resident and visitor spend incentives”, events, and other promotions.