Assize Courts building in DevizesTHE listed Assize Courts building in Devizes is under even greater threat following a fire last week that needed eight fire engines to tackle.

Firefighters from Devizes were called to the building in Northgate Street shortly after midnight last Thursday morning after smoke was seen billowing from a window at the rear.

The teams broke in through one of the two front doors and immediately called for back-up as they were confronted with a completely smoke-logged building.

As the building is known to have people sleeping rough in it, crews were immediately sent in wearing breathing apparatus to search for possible victims. But no one was harmed.

Pip Flowers, station officer at Devizes fire station, said: "There are inherent dangers in entering a derelict building, with missing floors and unknown debris lying about.

"We have to tread very carefully."

The fire had damaged a significant part of the gallery on the first floor and is thought to have been burning for most of the day before it was discovered.

Divisional officer Mark Gaskarth, who was in charge of the incident, said: "Firefighters also found a quantity of drug litter in the building which increases the risk to firefighters even more. This is just one of over 50 fires in derelict buildings that Wiltshire Fire Brigade have had to deal with in the last 12 months."

Six pumps, an aerial platform and a control unit all attended the fire, which was extinguished by 5am. It is thought that whoever set the fire got in through the basement door leading to the cells.

Mr Flowers said that this kind of vandalism sounded the death knell for the historic building, designed in 1835 by Thomas Wyatt.

He said: "We used to have this kind of problem at the Katharine McNeile clinic at Roundway Hospital. That's been demolished now, but we don't want that to happen to the Assize Courts."

The building has had a disastrous history since it was closed as a court and sold off by Wiltshire County Council nearly 20 years ago. It has been through many hands and is currently owned by a company based in Dubai in the Persian Gulf.

A spokesman for Jee Estates, agents for the owners, Gatewell Limited, said that they had been in touch with the fire brigade and Kennet District Council and were taking immediate steps to make the building secure.

Peter Lay, chairman of Devizes Development Partnership, is due to meet the owner when he comes to Britain at the end of March.

Mr Lay has been negotiating with Gatewell for some months, seeking to agree a price at which the DDP could buy it with funding from local councils and national heritage bodies.

He told the Gazette he was very disturbed to hear about the fire on Thursday morning.

He said: "Although the current owners have behaved completely responsibly in taking all the measures necessary to minimise damage to the building, more of these incidents are likely to occur and could lead to the potential loss of the building.

"The owners now seem to accept that it is not viable to privately fund the complete refurbishment of the building unless they are in receipt of a public sector grant. While it remains in private ownership there is no possibility of accessing any form of grant aid."

Mr Lay said: "It is imperative that a solution is found soon to Devizes' most important unresolved heritage restoration project."