Grosvenor Hotel Bristol: Structure ‘unstable’ and fence to go up around fire-damaged hotel

Avon Fire and Rescue Service say the structure of the Grosvenor Hotel is ‘unstable’ as crews continues to work at the site after a huge fire broke out last night (October 18). A structural engineer from Bristol City Council also said the building, which has been derelict since 1993, would remain cordoned off in case of collapse.

A firefighters from the scene told BristolWorld that crews would likely remain at the scene throughout the day to dampen the remaining ‘hot spots’ in the building. They said: “We’ve had structural engineers check the building’s stability.

“The structure is unsafe and there are still some hot spots on ground level but we are unable to send people in with breathing apparatus due to stability issues with the building. We will be here for a while yet as we are having to extinguish the hot spots from outside.”

Council representatives have also told BristolWorld that plans are ongoing to put up a fence around the perimeter to ensure the public’s safety.

Firefighters were called to the scene of the fire just before 10pm last night. Crews from Temple, Bedminster, Hicks Gate, Kingswood, Patchway, Avonmouth, Bath and Weston-Super-Mare found a fire on the ground floor of the building.

A huge cordon was put up and roads outside were closed. The fire service said there were no casualties and everyone was evacuated from a nearby building.

Group manager Ben Thompson, incident commander, said investigations into the fire were ongoing today and the cause is still unknown. The public have bee nurged to stay away from the scene.