Grosvenor Hotel Bristol: what we know so far about huge fire in St Mary Redcliffe

Fire crews in Bristol have been tackling a huge fire that has engulfed the derelict Grosvenor Hotel in the St Mary Redcliffe area of the city. Crews were called out shortly before 10pm last night (October 18) and crews from across the South West have been in attendance.

Avon Fire and Rescue have said that there were no casualties as a result of the fire and that several people were located from a neighbouring building for their own safety. Photos and videos of the fire spread across social media throughout the night with people sharing their shock at what they were seeing.

What did the Fire Service say?

A spokesperson for Avon Fire and Rescue gave a statement about when they received the call about the fire.

The fire service said: “Our Control Room received a call at 21:58 regarding an incident on Victoria Street in Bristol city centre and have taken a large volume of calls since.

“On arrival, crews from Temple, Bedminster, Hicks Gate, Kingswood, Patchway, Avonmouth, Bath and Weston-Super-Mare found a fire on the ground floor of a derelict building and are working to tackle the blaze.

“There were fortunately no casualties. A number of people were safely evacuated from a neighbouring building. We advise people to avoid the area while the incident is ongoing.”

The fire service has been contacted for further information on the fire.

“Flames and ash raining down above us”

The scenes of the bristol sky being turned orange by the fire have been shared far and wide by Twitter users.

Nathan Pumpkin was among the first people who saw the fire when coming back to stay at the Doubletree Hilton close by. He told Bristol World: “We came back from dinner and saw lots of smoke, flames and ash raining down above us. Within a few minutes the fire service and closed off the road and began tackling the blaze.”

Which roads were closed as a result of the fire?

On their social media pages, Avon Fire & Rescue Service updated the public on which roads have been closed due to the fire. Temple Way between Redcliffe Way and Victoria Street were shut.

Shortly before 6.30am this morning, the fire service informed the public that all roads surrounding Temple Way had reopened.

They tweeted: “All roads surrounding Temple Way that were closed due to this incident have now reopened.

“Thank you to all local residents and road users for your patience.”

The Grosvenor Hotel

The Grosvenor Hotel was opened in 1875 and was the work of architect S C Fripp, who had worked as Brunel’s assistant on designing the nearby Temple Meads station.

At its peak, the 70-bedroom hotel served as a grand place for people arriving by train to the city.

But following closure, the hotel became a shadow of itself with rotting furniture filling the rooms and graffiti covering the walls.

The city council had plans to purchase it as part of a regeneration project for the area.