DISTRAUGHT business owners affected by the Glasgow School of Art blaze have said they feel "isolated" and like an "afterthought" following last week's tragedy.

A group of 30 to 40 businessmen and women today met with representatives from Glasgow City Council to discuss the cordon preventing them from accessing their premises.

Frustrated owners told of their dismay over the lack of correspondence from emergency services and Glasgow City Council.

They claimed to have had no correspondence from council officials to inform them when they would be able to regain access to their shops and eateries.

Gill Hutchison, the owner of Biggar music store, which has operated for over 150 years, said: "The tragedy of the art school is the tragedy of other businesses.

"We don’t have information but at least we’ve managed to organise representatives to speak to a contact, and that’ll be the beginning of the process for us.

"We’ve had nothing so far other than the police at the cordon.”

The fire at the Mackintosh building on Renfrew Street is the second in just four years.

It had been undergoing restoration work after the last blaze in May 2014 when the huge fire hit late on Friday night.

Paul Evangelista, owner of Absolut Hair and Beauty said: "We’ve been treated as an afterthought.

"I’m being made to look like I’m in the wrong when my livelihood's at stake here.

"I feel like we’re doing our best to try and make a bad situation a little clearer.

"Even when the council come back to us though I don’t see what they’re going to do, the fire department is in control of everything. It’s all talk.

"We all feel very isolated. I’ve been hounding people to try and find out what’s happening.

"It’s not like me to do that sort of stuff but it’s out of absolute frustration.”

Quinnan Lee, proprietor of restaurant Thairiffic spoke of the discussion as merely a "starting point".

He said: "I seen the last fire four years ago and now this time, and this one’s worse. I’m definitely concerned.

"We all share similar concerns. The art school’s a tragedy but the human tragedy’s closely following.

"You can speculate that basis on what Victoria’s nightclub went through, the local businesses are still suffering in the aftermath."

Donald MacLeod, the owner of the Garage nightclub on Sauchiehall Street, told the BBCs Good Morning Scotland radio programme "people are gutted".

He said: "It's a tragedy what's happened to the art school and the ABC and Campus.

"It's another blow to them and the street that was getting hit with roadworks from the regeneration and trade was down for a lot of business there.

"So this is like a hammer blow to them and they are bereft and looking for help.

"The damage is extensive, catastrophic even.

Donald described the fire on top of recent road works as "terminal" and "very damaging".

He said: "The roadworks were bad enough, the fact that they looked awful.

"As much as I wanted to see the regeneration and a big backer of the bid, that was haphazard in its approach and business were getting affected and getting nowhere with the council, they were not talking to anybody.

"One day Sauchiehall Street will look beautiful but I hope it will look beautiful and have business on it."

Donald said he thinks an emergency relief scheme should be set up to help affected business.

He said: "I go along the same line as the Federation of Small Business, an emergency relief scheme must be set up for all firms and business affected by the fire.

"There is a lack of communication, a lack of comfort, a lack of solace and understanding.

"Rather than these businesses phoning the council to find out what's going on, council officers should be out there talking to these businesses and reassuring them and speaking to them.

"At the moment footfall is falling off the abyss and it's terrible because you can't walk anywhere."

Glasgow City Council has been approached for comment.