Assistant Chief Fire Officer David Farries of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service has declared that a "huge effort" from fire crews was essential in stopping a devastating blaze outside Glasgow Central station from spreading to a nearby hotel. The fire, which erupted on Sunday evening, originated in a vape shop located at the junction of Union Street and Gordon Street, though the exact cause remains undetermined at this stage.
Intense Fire Contained Through Coordinated Response
Assistant Chief Officer Farries commended firefighters for their "fantastic work" in collaboration with multi-agency partners to limit the fire's progression. He emphasised that an investigation is necessary to understand why the fire spread so aggressively and to ascertain the contents of the building at the time of the incident.
"We're not sure at this time, in terms of what the contents of the properties were at that point," Farries stated. "Clearly, we were mobilised to an incident in what was a vape shop on the street. But we need to do full investigations with our multi-agency partners to understand the nature of the fire and understand why the fire spread the way that the fire did."
Historic Building Severely Damaged
The blaze has left only the facade standing of the B-listed Victorian building where it started. Despite the intensity of the fire, crews successfully prevented it from reaching the Grand Central Hotel on the opposite side of the station, a achievement Farries described as particularly impressive given the circumstances.
"Clearly, we've stopped the fire spreading at the Grand Central Hotel, which was a huge effort from our crews," he told journalists. Regarding the ferocity of the fire, he added, "I think the pictures speak for themselves – that's a very intense fire."
Massive Firefighting Operation Deployed
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service reported that over 200 firefighters have been involved in efforts to secure the area since the alarm was raised at 3.46pm on Sunday. At the peak of the incident, 18 fire appliances and specialist resources were deployed, including a high-volume pump drawing water from the River Clyde to combat the flames.
Assistant Chief Officer Farries addressed concerns about the building's structure contributing to the fire's escalation, noting that firefighters are trained to handle fires in older Victorian-era buildings common across Scotland. However, he highlighted the dangers of committing crews to fully involved structures.
"Our firefighters are trained to work on these premises, but ultimately committing firefighters into buildings that are fully involved in fire is clearly dangerous," he explained. "It's not something that we would do when potentially we would like to fight that fire in a different way and make sure the fire doesn't spread to adjacent buildings. So it's about making sure that we keep our firefighters safe and the public safe without letting the fire spread as far as we can possibly help."
Community and Crews Praised for Resilience
Farries expressed that everyone has been "really shocked by the great intensity of that fire," making the successful containment all the more remarkable. The coordinated response ensured that no injuries were reported, and critical adjacent infrastructure, including the hotel, was protected from the flames.
The investigation into the fire's origin and spread is ongoing, with authorities working to determine the full sequence of events and any contributing factors. The incident underscores the challenges faced by emergency services in urban historic districts and the critical importance of rapid, well-coordinated responses to prevent catastrophic outcomes.
