Arson spree turns fruitmarket into 'death trap'

THE site of Edinburgh's old fruitmarket was today branded a "death trap" after five arson attacks in the past two weeks.

Youths are thought to be targeting the building on Chesser Avenue, which is in the process of being demolished to make way for 400 new flats.

Community leaders in the area today called for the developers working on the nine-acre site to provide better security, as fire officers warned youngsters of the dangers of entering derelict buildings.

The most recent and serious attack happened on Tuesday night, when eight fire appliances were sent to tackle a blaze.

Fountainbridge and Craiglockhart Councillor Gordon Buchan said residents were becoming increasingly worried.

He said: "The locals and I have been on for ages about getting better fencing to prevent people from walking in because the site isn't secure enough.

"People have been going in and running amok, and it's a death trap - just what needs to happen before action is taken by landowners to secure the site?"

He added: "I would like to see the site properly secured so that people can't get into it, and I would like an apology from the landowners to local residents.

"Seeing a building going up in smoke next to your house is frightening for residents, and it's not right that they have to put up with that."

Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service group manager Jim Fraser said the building was becoming more dangerous with every attack.

"In all cases at the fruitmarket people have got access to the derelict building and ignited something within the building," he said.

"It's a very dangerous practice for youths or children to enter a property that's derelict, because it might be in a dangerous state.

"The worrying thing about this is that there's obviously a trend here, and the more often they do it the more dangerous it becomes, because each time they do it the building gets more damaged."

The first arson attack happened on July 5 at 8pm, with the second taking place the following afternoon at 4.40pm.

Two more incidents followed those, on July 14 and 16, with the most recent occurring on Tuesday, just before 6pm.

Harry Sutherland, chairman of Hutchison and Chesser Community Council, lives near the site and says residents are frustrated by the constant problems there. Mr Sutherland said: "The problems are continuous and the biggest problem for residents is the smoke. There was thick, black smoke at the last one."

The community leader added: "People are worried that the fire is going to spread one of these days. We would like to see the site cleared as soon as possible because then there would be nothing to set fire to."

The community leader added that fly-tipping had also become a major headache since the demolition work started.

A spokeswoman for Blackrock, which owns the site, said: "Blackrock's demolition contractors, who currently have possession of the site and who are aware of the recent vandalism issues, are making every effort to address this problem and resolve recent breaches in security."

Construction of the new homes planned for the site is due to start early next year.