STAFF at the O2 ABC have broken their silence three days after the hugely-popular music venue was left devastated in the Glasgow School of Art fire.

Four appliances remained at the scene at midday on Monday following the blaze which broke out in the historic Mackintosh Building at 11.19pm on Friday and quickly spread to nearby buildings, including the O2 ABC.

Read more: Catriona Stewart on why the ABC is important too

The fire is the second in four years to hit the building, which was undergoing a multi-million-pound restoration project to return it to its former glory.

In a statement on Monday, O2 ABC bosses said: “Following the fire at the Glasgow School of Art Mackintosh Building on Friday, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service remain in attendance on Sauchiehall Street and adjoining buildings to O2 ABC Glasgow.

“Our venue remains under the control of the emergency services with whom we are in constant dialogue since the fire at the GSA broke out. Our immediate priority is to our staff and also to the artists and promoters who have events programmed into our diary.

Read more: Catriona Stewart on why the ABC is important too

“We are working as quickly as possible to move or reschedule forthcoming events to alternative venues in the city with the minimum disruption and prioritise immediate shows taking place.

“The messages of support we have received has been incredibly overwhelming and we are grateful to everyone for their understanding and patience at what is a difficult and challenging time, in exceptional and unforeseen circumstances.”

The venue’s team said all details concerning forthcoming shows would be published on the event pages of the website at o2abcglasgow.co.uk and shared to social media channels as well.

Ticket holders will also be contacted by ticket agents as soon as information is available.

The statement came as fire chiefs said they were confident they would discover how the blaze started - but stressed the “very complex” investigation would take time.