These images give an idea of the extent of the damage. I think the most affected part seems to be where a modern extension had been built. Picture by PEDRO.
By Bill Heaney
Hundreds of married couples were deeply saddened yesterday to learn that the hotel where they had held their wedding reception had been destroyed in a spectacular fire which lit up part of Clydeside on the outskirts of Dumbarton.
Police Scotland officersd assisted Scottish Fire and Rescue Service fire fighters at Dumbuck Hotel which they described as “a derelict building on Glasgow Road, Dumbarton”.
The site of the old hotel, built in 1798, is contiguous with row upon row of highly inflammable warehouses filled with casks of maturing Scotch whisky, worth £millions.
These were formerly owned by Allied Distillers Limited, who were taken over by Chivas Brothers and are now based at Kimalid on the banks of the River Leven in Dumbarton north.
They were famously guarded by geese, the so-called Scotch Watch, a public relations master-stroke which saw the the company’s brands, which include Ballantine’s Finest, receive huge publicity wortldwide.
Pictures at the opening of the “new” Dumbuck Hotel by footballers David Weir and Murdo MacLeod, of Rangers and Celtic and Scotland, and the owners at that time, Tommy and Petra McMillan. Tommy was a Scotland youth footballer and Petra is one of leading dund-raisers for the Marie Curie cancer charity in Scotland. She has raised – and continues to raise – hundreds of thousands of pounds for the cause.
The fire, which saw flames roar 60-feet into the night sky, was reported around 1.40am on Thursday, 27 June, 2024.
Fire tenders with blue lights flashing and sirens blaring raced to the scene.
The A814 Glasgow Road was closed between the A82 and Oaktree Gardens, local diversions were put in place and traffic was diverted to alternative routes. No-one was injured.
Inquiries into the circumstances are at an early stage, but speculation about wilful fire-raising has been widespread on social media.
The Dumbuck Hotel had for the most of last century been the leading place of leisure and pleasure in Dumbarton and the surrounding area.
It was the number one spot for weddings and family gatherings and for funerals.
Baptisms, First Communions, graduation meals, Rotary, Lions, Inner Wheel meetings, school reunions, Burns Club lunches and annual dinners were par for the course.
Denny’s shipyard, factories and local offices had their nights out there, and civic receptions took place often more than once a year.
Bar manager Ned Ward and hotel manager Fred McLaughlin ran it for many years.
You name it, whatever it was it took place at Dumbuck Hotel.
My wife, Bernadette and I had our wedding reception there more than 50 years ago, as did many of our friends.
A police spokesperson said: “Anyone with information or anyone with dashcam footage which could assist our inquiries should contact police via 101, quoting incident number 0235 of 27 June.”
Top of page picture is of flames shooting high into the night sky.
The aftermath of the Dumbuck Hotel blaze. The new extension, where the dining room was, has been destroyed. Picture by Pedro