Fire destroys Edinburgh construction site - VIDEO

A seven-storey block of apartments under construction in Edinburgh was almost completely destroyed in a spectacular fire over the weekend.

Video of the Edinburgh fire

Chrysalis Apartments at Albion Gardens caught fire on Saturday afternoon, forcing the evacuation of more than 50 nearby residents.

At its height, around 80 firefighters were onsite tackling the blaze that ripped through the 85 apartments, destroying most of the construction and damaging a 100m high crane.

Police feared the crane, which belongs to Kier Plant, might collapse on neighbouring homes and broke down doors to evacuate residents.

A Health and Safety Executive Inspector is currently on site investigating how it can be made safe to allow residents to return to their homes.

The site is being developed by Bellway Homes. Several flats had already been sold.

A spokeswoman for the company said it was primarily concerned with securing the safety of the site and getting the residents back into their homes.

She said she did not have an estimate of the damage as yet.

It is not yet known what caused the blaze.

Hundreds of locals gathered to watch the fire rage, including fans watching Hibernian play St Mirren at the nearby Easter Road stadium.