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| Search continues into hotel blaze | |
| (1 day later) | |
| Fire crews are continuing to search the burnt-out remains of a disused Denbighshire hotel. | |
| A 45-year-old man rescued from the blaze on Tuesday is improving but remains ill in hospital and three others are feared missing. | |
| A sniffer dog trained to find bodies has been used to determine if anyone else was in the building at the time. | |
| Police said they had no independent reports of missing people, other than given by the rescued man. | Police said they had no independent reports of missing people, other than given by the rescued man. |
| North Wales Fire and Rescue Service said they had been hampered by the dangerous state of The Grange following the fire. | |
| Sniffer dogs and their handlers have only been able to search small parts of the former hotel. | |
| At least one of the building's chimney stacks is unstable and high winds added to the problems as police and fire crews checked the scene. | |
| Colin Hanks, assistant chief fire officer, said around 40 people were working at the scene, including specialist search and rescue teams from all three Welsh fire services. | |
| Excavations | Excavations |
| North Wales Police, including people from the forensic science service and crime scene investigators, were also involved. | |
| The sniffer dog was being sent in before a search of the building, he said. | The sniffer dog was being sent in before a search of the building, he said. |
| He added: "Hopefully [it] will be able to indicate to us if there is anything of interest in any particular area. Then we start the excavations." | He added: "Hopefully [it] will be able to indicate to us if there is anything of interest in any particular area. Then we start the excavations." |
| Specialist sniffer dogs, which can sniff out accelerants, have been used to help establish whether the fire was started deliberately. | |
| Parts of the building, including an external wall, had to be demolished to give easier access for the teams. | |
| The fire was reported just before 2200 GMT on Tuesday and took crews from across north Wales four hours to bring under control. | The fire was reported just before 2200 GMT on Tuesday and took crews from across north Wales four hours to bring under control. |
| Eighty firefighters tackled the blaze at one point and crews were still there on Wednesday night damping down. | Eighty firefighters tackled the blaze at one point and crews were still there on Wednesday night damping down. |
| A sniffer dog was sent in after the building was made more safe | |
| Shortly after 2300 GMT on Tuesday, they had managed to rescue the badly injured man from the rear of the building and he was taken to Glan Clwyd Hospital in Bodelwyddan. | |
| But the crews were forced to abandon their search when parts of the three-storey building, on East Parade, began collapsing around them. | But the crews were forced to abandon their search when parts of the three-storey building, on East Parade, began collapsing around them. |
| One firefighter from Prestatyn suffered minor burns for which he was treated in hospital. | One firefighter from Prestatyn suffered minor burns for which he was treated in hospital. |
| A sign outside the 28-bedroom hotel, which has been boarded up, indicates it is for sale. | A sign outside the 28-bedroom hotel, which has been boarded up, indicates it is for sale. |
| It is understood there have been problems with people breaking in and squatting in the disused building. | It is understood there have been problems with people breaking in and squatting in the disused building. |