In one TikTok video, a person who claimed they had visited the site said it had “beautiful views of the city at the top and was very chill and nice to go to”.
However, the number of people visiting the site had increased recently due to the location being revealed on social media, the person claimed.
“When I first found a way in and showed my mates I was in there quite a bit and I never saw anybody else, but as it became more and more popular on TikTok I started bumping into more and more people,” the person said.
Inside the Surry Hills building before it was destroyed by fire.Credit: rleywn.2
Police on Friday said two 13-year-old schoolchildren were assisting police with their inquiries after they attended Paddington and Kings Cross police stations with their parents late on Thursday. No charges have been laid.
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Police said they were also still looking for multiple other teens who were seen near the warehouse at the time of the blaze. They have appealed for those teenagers and their parents or carers to come forward.
The blaze broke out at a row of vacant buildings on Randle Street near Central Station about 4pm on Thursday and was quickly escalated to a “10th alarm” status, the most severe type of fire.
Explosions could be heard as the blaze engulfed the site. A huge fireball rose moments before a major wall section exploded outwards, showering the street in bricks, concrete and other debris.
More than 100 firefighters attended and prevented the blaze from spreading to surrounding buildings.
Inside the Surry Hills building destroyed by fire.Credit: rleywn.2
Developer Hanave Pty Ltd had plans to turn the site into a $38 million, nine-storey hotel with 123 rooms, two restaurants, a bar and a cafe. Architect Tim Greer, from the firm that won a design competition for the complex, said construction was scheduled to start on it soon.
“The family who owned the building had a dream of turning it into a hotel,” Greer said. “All that thinking and incredibly hard work to get it to the point to hand over to the builders to work their magic.
“It’s all ended. It’s just gone.”
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