Cordon on Union Street to remain in place for months after devastating fire

A cordon on Union Street in Glasgow is to remain in place for months following a devastating fire near Central Station.

People on the street watched as a piece of the city’s history went up in flames on March 8.

The blaze broke out in a vape shop on Union Street near Central Station, tearing through a Victorian-era building that has since been demolished.

Nobody was injured in the fire, and it was contained to one building.

Although neighbouring Glasgow Central Station survived unscathed, there were days of disruption, and dozens of businesses were lost.

Demolition under way following blaze STV News

The fire left a number of surrounding streets closed to the public STV News

A careful and complex operation was launched to get Scotland’s busiest railway station back up and running.

More than six weeks on, the fire-hit Union Corner has been demolished.

On Thursday, Glasgow City Council confirmed that work is under way to stabilise the gable wall adjoining Central Station Hotel, which was exposed by the collapse and demolition of the building.

However, the cordon on Union Street and Gordon Street will remain in place while works continue, expected to last until early July.

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King Charles meets with Union Street firefighters six weeks on from blaze

Firefighters who helped extinguish the Union Street fire were honoured at Dumfries House in Cumnock

A council statement read: “Until this work is complete, the gable wall remains in a dangerous condition with the structure still at risk of further collapse.

“This means the current safety cordon on Union Street and Gordon St must remain in place to protect the safety of the public and those working on the site.

“Progress with stabilisation work will be subject to ongoing review. If work progresses well, we will be assessing whether we can move more quickly to relax the safety cordon to allow footways around the site to reopen before all work is completed, which would provide access to some of the buildings currently within the cordon.

“However, it is anticipated that access to affected buildings that are part of Central Station or Central Hotel will not be possible until all stabilisation works have been successfully completed.

“We remain in contact with businesses and keyholders affected by the safety cordon to keep them advised of developments with work to make safe the dangerous structures on Union St and Gordon St.”

Glasgow & West

Union Street fire: ‘It’s basically a construction site – how will businesses survive?’

A barber near the site of the blaze warns local businesses face financial ‘catastrophe’ with reduced footfall and limited financial support.

Businesses impacted by the blaze say they face financial “catastrophe” without further support from the council.

A fund is being administered by Glasgow City Council using the Scottish Government’s £10m commitment to support recovery efforts.

However, businesses that have since reopened say support available falls short, with many struggling to recover lost trade.

On Wednesday, King Charles met with firefighters who helped contain the blaze.

Frontline workers received the “honour” of a royal recognition at Dumfries House in Cumnock.

Commander Stephen Nesbitt of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service called the blaze the most “complex fire” he’s had to deal with in his 25 years in the force.