Former Kirkcaldy nightclub gutted in devastating fire

Emergency services remain at the scene tackling the blaze which tore through the former Kitty’s Nightclub on the corner of Hunter Street. The roof of the club has been destroyed, and the first floor has been reduced to charred remains with the blaze still raging. The spire which sat above the corner of the historic building - once home to the Town’;s Post Post Office - dramatically collapsed as the flames took hold.

Fire crews continue to arrive at the scene and police have closed off a host of roads around the club. Hundreds of spectators have gathered across the Town Square and outside the bus station to witness the devastating scenes.

The drama began around 3:00pm and thick black smoke be seen billowing across the town. Fire crews were joined by the height appliance unit which is being axed from Kirkcaldy Fire Station - just two minutes away - and relocated to Dunfermline, It is pouring water on to the exposed, blackened beams where the roof once was.

It is the third fire to hit the empty building in the heart of the town. Kitty’s closed in 2019 and in December, Hunter Street Properties was given permission by Fife Council to convert the former nightclub and adjacent bar into a total of 19 flats.

A new first floor was to be added to the single storey west wing facing on to Wemyssfield to form four two-storey houses, and six flats created in its east wing facing on to Hunter Street. Six flats would be formed within the east wing facing on to Hunter Street - three main door flats at ground floor level, two at first floor level, and a small one-bedroom flat to the attic.

The developer has been in discussions with the building’s owner to try to deliver the project, but rising costs saw it put all plans on hold, and the building was recently put back on the market by property consultants, Falconer, recently. The planning application for re-development was also formally withdrawn.