The visitors stuck in Glasgow after the Union Street fire

Tourists visiting Glasgow have told BBC Scotland News that they have been unable to leave the city since the devastating fire on Union Street on Sunday.

The voco Grand Central hotel was evacuated as the blaze took hold in a building on the corner of Union Street and Gordon Street, next to the station.

It has been closed since then, meaning people staying there have been left without passports, medicine or personal items. In some cases, that meant they could not leave the country.

Dutch couple Emily Meekel and Victor Buitenhuis, who were in Glasgow for work, only got their passports back on Wednesday afternoon. They have been told they won't get their other items for at least another week.

Hotel chain IHG owns the Grand Central and says it is working with emergency services and authorities about gaining access to the building.

No-one was injured in Sunday's fire, which is understood to have started in a vape shop on Union Street.

Emily and Victor currently stay in Birmingham but are originally from the Netherlands, where they had planned to be this weekend.

They were due to be in Glasgow from Saturday until Monday, so Emily could attend a work event, before travelling to London for another work event and then going to visit family back home by the weekend.

The couple contacted BBC Your Voice in the aftermath of the fire to explain their situation.

They were out with friends when news broke about the fire. They then received a message from IHG telling them not to return to the Grand Central and that alternative accommodation was being arranged.

"Nobody knows anything, so we have just been checking in with the hotel and they say 'not today, maybe tomorrow'," said Victor on Wednesday morning.

"We've been to the site and obviously the building needs to be kept safe - we understand that and it's awful what happened to all the businesses.

"But we are a bit stuck now. One of the ladies I spoke to from the hotel said they would maybe look at getting passports and medicine out first.

"It is just a waiting game now, waiting around and trying to manage everything back in the Netherlands and with work."

The couple were able to finally collect passports on Wednesday afternoon, but were told other items will be inaccessible until 21 March.

Emily works for the University of Birmingham, but studied for her undergraduate degree in Glasgow several years ago.

Currently 28 weeks pregnant with the couple's first child, she was delighted to be back visiting the city - she just hadn't expected to still be here past Monday night.

"We spent yesterday going and getting clothes, toothbrushes and things like that," she said.

"The biggest problem is the passports, but my laptop and hard drive is in there with all my work stuff too. I'm calmer now but it was really stressful at first, having a panic about everything.

"It's like we're hostages to the city, in the best possible way."

The couple are keen to stress the most important thing is making sure the area is safe and there is no risk of injury. They are also grateful for the support of friends.

"It's a bit of an overwhelming feeling, because you can't do anything," said Victor.

"You hear maybe a couple of days but then maybe a couple of weeks from somewhere else and you're left waiting. Obviously you want to make sure the station is safe, but we are sort of stuck here now."

The couple intend to fly out from Glasgow on Thursday evening, now that they have their passports again.

A spokesperson for IHG said: "Following a fire at a neighbouring building on Sunday, voco Grand Central was safely evacuated as a precaution. No guests and colleagues were harmed.

"The hotel remains temporarily closed while we continue to work closely with the emergency services and relevant authorities.

"On the advice of the authorities, access to the hotel is currently restricted. The team is working as quickly and safely as possible to support guests in being reunited with their passports and essential belongings."

Glasgow Central station has reopened for low-level services that connect the city centre with parts of Lanarkshire and West Dunbartonshire, but trains that leave the main part of the station - the high level - will not resume until at least Monday.