THE demolition of Sauchiehall Street’s fire-damaged buildings is to take longer than first feared.

Glasgow City Council leader Susan Aitken confirmed the news to councillors on Thursday.

Early estimates suggested the work would take up to two months.

But Cllr Aitken admitted that has now been extended to three months after concerns over the stability of the damaged structures.

She said: “There’s a significant section of Sauchiehall Street which does need to be demolished.

“It is important to point out that the demolition operation in itself can pose a danger to the public.

“The initial estimate was two months, but the period of demolition is in the hands of the demolition company rather than the council.

“Council officers are being guided by the demolition experts in terms of how long that is going to take.

“The stability of the damaged structures is continuing to deteriorate. It is now estimated that there will be a 10 to 12 weeks demolition period.”

The local authority leader said that the new estimate arose on Wednesday with preparatory work having commenced yesterday.

An exclusion zone around the surrounding areas, including parts of Renfield Street at Hope Street, will be in place during the demolition period.

Contractors have been gathering information about the site, with cranes arriving at the site yesterday morning.

Security staff, demolition contractors, City Property officers and utility providers have been monitoring the buildings round the clock.

Cllr Aitken also insisted that she wanted to turn Sauchiehall Street into “something special”.

But she slapped down suggestions that money could easily be taken from the City Deal to help regenerate the fire-damaged area.

She said: “There’s the work further west in Sauchiehall Street which is covered by City Deal.

“There are perhaps some misconceptions that we can just dip in and take money out of City Deal. There are strict rules about how we use that money.”

She also paid tribute to the emergency services and other staff who played their part in battling the fire and helping those affected.

Cllr Aitken added: “It was obviously an enormous shock to everybody seeing a part of our famous street up in flames. We were very lucky and the whole city is extremely thankful that there was no loss of life.

“There were four people treated for minor injuries and one didn’t have to go to hospital.

“It was a magnificent response to a shocking incident.”

More than 100 firefighters battled the blaze, which started on the upper floors of Victoria’s Nightclub, last month.

Just last week, police and fire chiefs admitted that finding the cause of the inferno is unlikely, with the chances of examining a potential crime scene low.