Union Street fire: 'Seriously compromised' structure could set back full Central Station re-opening plan

Providing an update to the public, head of building standards at Glasgow City Council, Raymond Barlow, laid out the current situation on the ground at Union Street, where firefighters have now worked for three days on the blaze.

Mr Barlow said further collapses to the building means that the remaining structure is now “seriously compromised”.

He said: "Since the early stages of the fire on Union Street, and as part of the wider support being provided to the fire service, my staff have been on site assessing the building and the extent of the damage. As everyone will be aware, there was a catastrophic collapse at the height of the fire, with the front façades coming down. Since then, working closely with our fire service colleagues, we've seen further collapses during the intervening period, the most recent being the southern gable of the remaining structure.

“This means that what remains is now seriously compromised. While the fire service remains fully in charge of the site, our access is limited. Once they are able to step away, we will take over the site and do whatever is necessary in the interests of public safety."

Route director Ross Moran told The Scotsman earlier that Network Rail was working towards a full re-opening of Scotland’s busiest station. However, the latest update from council officials could set that back - with alternative options explored instead.

Mr Moran said: “We are working on two things simultaneously - a full reopening, and opening platforms 15 to ten.

“If the city council was to say it [the facade] is unsafe and we don’t want any services near the facade, then we are attempting to assess going for the least risky [option].

“We are evaluating passenger numbers to understand were we to operate those platforms, could we accommodate them. We’re looking at its feasibility.”

Mr Moran said another complication was that alternative temporary accommodation might need to be provided within the station for train operators’ staff such as ScotRail if their bases in Caledonian Chambers, on its east side just down from the fire site, were found to be smoke damaged.

He also confirmed that the site remains in the custody of Scottish Fire and Rescue.

He continued: “Once they have satisfied themselves there is no risk of reignition it will be passed on to Glasgow City Council, which will start to pull together a plan as to whether the facade needs to be demolished or whether they want to stabilise it.

“We are working hand in glove with them as to what that plan looks like and what impact a segregation zone to demolish it would have on the operation of the station.”