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Edinburgh fire: Demolition threat
EDINBURGH, Scotland -- Parts of the Edinburgh's historic Old Town could be demolished after being devastated by a weekend fire, authorities said. A seven-storey building at the centre of the damaged area is said to be unstable and could collapse. The blaze began on Saturday night, damaging homes, nightclubs, and university research offices in the historic centre. The blaze was under control by Monday morning. Edinburgh City Council estimated that damage costs could run into millions of pounds. Most of the 150 people moved from their homes on Saturday, including several students in university housing, had to spend a second night in alternative accommodation, a council spokeswoman told the UK's Press Association. She said an initial inspection had found that some demolition would be required. The Old Town is the heart of the city and is listed as a World Heritage site. None of the damaged buildings was on the heritage listing. Staff at heritage agency Historic Scotland said the area affected was sited at the periphery of the World Heritage site, PA reported. The blaze started shortly before 8.15 p.m. (20:15 GMT) on Saturday night above a nightclub just off Cowgate. More than 80 firefighters were still tackling the blaze on Sunday afternoon, and fire crews from areas around the city were drafted in to help. Research work on artificial intelligence was destroyed at one of the university's bases for its School of Infomatics, an internationally acclaimed centre for research and teaching. The cobbled Royal Mile forms the spine of the Old Town, running from Edinburgh Castle to the Palace of Holyroodhouse -- Queen Elizabeth II's official residence when she stays in Scotland. A network of cobbled alleyways, medieval courtyards and lanes branch off along its length, containing historic buildings such as St. Giles' Cathedral, Edinburgh University, the City Chambers and the Royal Museum of Scotland. The brigade's senior divisional officer, Graham Torrie, described the blaze as "certainly the biggest fire in Edinburgh in living memory." The fire operation has been made difficult because of the nature of the very old buildings which contain a warren of different premises, cover seven floors and are accessible from roads at different levels. Electricity, gas and telephones in the area were disconnected. Several roads around the area were closed and police advised motorists to avoid the city centre. A police spokesman said the delays could last for several days.
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