CONCERNS over a possible fire at an abandoned city nightclub were sent to the council over a week before the building went up in flames, destroying a 140-year-old Grade II listed church next door.

It has also been revealed that representatives from South Wales Fire and Rescue, Newport City Council and Gwent Police met just hours before the fire to discuss the concerns.

The fire at the former Zanzibar nightclub on Stow Hill on Friday, June 15, quickly spread to the Bethel Community Church next door.

Both buildings were gutted by the flames and a cordon around the site is expected to remain in place all week.

A 43 year old man and a 36 year old woman from Newport were arrested by Gwent Police the day after the fire, but today a police spokesman confirmed both have been released under investigation.

The devastating fire came just eight days after local conservative party member Michael Enea emailed Newport City Council over fears the building could "collapse or end up going up in flames".

But the council say they acted on concerns raised about the safety of the privately owned property immediately, and carried out a structural safety assessment the day the email was recieved. 

Mr Enea became concerned after a video surfaced online showing the inside of the former club.

In the email, he wrote: "It appears the inside of the building is in total disrepair.

"The outside structural integrity of the building is in question whereby the roof has caved in totally, with the top floor open to the sky.

"There are squatters staying in the building with evidence of drugs and needles lying around the place.

"Could the planning department inspect the building as I fear this could collapse or end up going up in flames. The building is clearly not safe and secure [and it's a very big building]."

Following the email, a site visit was carried out - but Mr Enea claims only the exterior was examined.

Mr Enea said: "It was very lackadaisical. We're calling for an investigation into why it wasn't a proper site visit with the owners."

Mr Enea added the video showed people walking around the inside of the venue, as well as drug paraphernalia and candles visible on tables.

When he heard about the fire on Friday night, he said he and others were "angry and frustrated".

"It could have been prevented," he said. "Everybody is devastated. A lot of people have fond memories of that nightclub."

Mr Enea also attended the church's service in Stow Hill car park on Sunday morning.

He said: "It was a very sombre service. It was looking to the future rather than looking at the past."

Responding to Mr Enea's claims, the council confirmed they were aware of his concerns, but stressed that they acted on the information immediately.

They added that a multi-agency meeting was held at the former club hours before the fire broke out, but no risk to public safety was found. 

A council spokesperson said: "The former Zanzibar nightclub on stow hill is a privately owned and managed building which has been empty for a number of years.

"Concerns regarding the safety of the building were recently raised with the council and were actioned immediately.

"A site visit to assess the structural safety of the building was carried out on the day the correspondence was received and the building was considered not to pose a risk to public safety.

"The rear of the building was however found to be unsecure and the owners were contacted and requested to make the site secure.

"The council has powers under Section 29 of the Miscellaneous Provisions Act in respect of unsecure buildings and this building has previously been boarded up a number of times by the owners.

"A further site meeting also took place on Friday June 15 with colleagues from the fire and rescue service. Further contact was to be made with the owner in order to expedite the action required from them."

Gwent Police have confirmed that they also attended the meeting on June 15, which took place outside the former Zanzibar nightclub at around 1.30pm on the day of the fire.

The South Wales Argus has contacted the building owners but has yet to receive a comment.