As many as six houses may have to be completely rebuilt after a blaze which started in a scrap yard in Dundee swept through a terrace of new-build properties, forcing around 70 residents to flee.
Devastated Scott Court residents returned on Monday to assess the damage after what for many had been a sleepless night.
One clearly shaken 18-year-old woman, who did not wish to be named, said, “We’ve lost everything. The fire just ripped through the bedroom and we had to stay with pals last night but I didn’t sleep at all. I’m in shock.
“We lost all my gran’s stuff we got when she died.”
Her mother added, “I’m worried about my mother-in-law’s stuff everything else you can replace. We’re just lucky we got out and no one was hurt.”
Another frustrated tenant keen to get back into his house was RAF Leuchars storeman Rab Henderson (44).
“I stayed in the Premier Inn last night and went to work today to take off the next two days,” he said.
“Hillcrest still don’t know what’s going on and they said I’m in the hotel for the next few nights. I want them to be able to tell me if I’ll be back to work and some sort of normality soon.”Out of controlThe fire began at the Henderson Kerr yard in Paterson Street at around 4.45pm on Sunday among a pile of cars and old skips and quickly grew out of control.
The Hillcrest and council town houses in Scott Court destroyed in the blaze were part of a £4.2 million scheme to transform an old Dundee mill into low cost rented accommodation.
Hillcrest Housing Association started building work on 49 new homes on the site of the former Lawside Works in 2006 as part of a wider Hilltown redevelopment project, with tenants moving in in 2008.
Residents were evacuated by police and had to watch in horror as their homes went up in flames.
By 10pm the area was still cordoned off and many residents made homeless by the blaze spent the night with friends and family members while Hillcrest Housing, aided by Dundee City Council, arranged for others to be put up in hotels around the city.
Hillcrest staff returned at 9am to begin a painstaking assessment.
Housing director Fiona Morrison said, “Obviously last night our main concern was to get people into emergency accommodation.
“Today we have been down to get people into their homes and then sort emergency supplies.
“We’re going to give people still in the hotels emergency money as a goodwill payment until their insurance kicks in because there are people there with only the clothes they stand up in.”RehomeHillcrest has also been covering the cost of displaced tenants’ meals while they are forced to stay in the hotels and encouraged them to keep all their receipts. The housing authority will start to rehome some of the tenants in furnished accommodation today.
Crew manager William Stoops and his team from Tayside Fire and Rescue were on hand to assess the properties.
“We’ve been trying to liaise with Hillcrest Housing and services like electricity and water and then see which flats are liveable and which are accessible just to get belongings, and which are completely damaged,” he said.
Ms Morrison added, “The whole middle section’s looking like it needs to be rebuilt.”
Caroline Spalding (45), from one of the worst affected homes, said, “My friend collected me and took me to my mum’s last night but I tossed and turned all night worrying about the house.
“I was back and forward all day trying to get stuff but it will be six to eight months before I’m back again. I got in today with the fire brigade and everything’s just smoke-damaged. When I lifted my slippers they left dirty footprints.”
Caroline said the fire brigade have now taken residents’ keys from them to prevent them trying to retrieve more belongings.
James Yule (42) was more fortunate and able to return home after firefighters gave his house the all-clear.
“I was lucky but a few of my neighbours are devastated,” he said.
“It could have been worse. The firemen said if this had happened at night it could have been bodies they were pulling out instead of people’s belongings.”
Detectives are hunting four boys spotted acting suspiciously running from the site at around the time the blaze took hold.