What happened at Aberdeen’s Poundstretcher store?

In 1998 a fire broke out in Poundstretcher Aberdeen. It was one of Aberdeen’s worst fires with more than 300 firefighters in attendance for 12 hours after it began in the 25,000sq foot store on a busy Saturday afternoon.

What can the industry learn from the Poundstretcher Aberdeen incident?

Following the fire the building remained a shell but was made safe. However, with the roof completely destroyed and remaining parts of the structure exposed to the elements, the interior continued to deteriorate.

In July 2000, Aberdeen City Council served a repairs notice on the building owners. During the renovation works in January 2002, a structural wall tragically gave way and collapsed upon Mr Erik Peterson, who was conducting salvaging works.

Riverside Construction was ultimately fined £35,000 in 2005 after it admitted to breaches of health and safety regulations.