COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — A fire raged through one of Copenhagen’s oldest buildings Tuesday, causing the iconic 17th-century Old Stock Exchange spire to collapse as bystanders rushed to help emergency services save precious paintings and other valuables.
Danish Culture Minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt said it was “touching” to see how many people lent their hand “to save art treasures and iconic images from the burning building”. One man jumped off his bike on his way to work to help with the effort.
Brian Mikkelsen, head of the Danish Chamber of Commerce, which is based at the Old Stock Exchange, and his staff were seen scrolling through a folder of photos of paintings to be saved. They were taken to the nearby parliament and the Danish National Archives, around the corner from the burning building.
“We were able to save a lot,” a visibly excited Mikkelsen told reporters. “This is a national disaster.”
He was also involved in rescuing paintings and other valuables from the flames and said they had to use tools, including a crowbar, to remove them.
The fire started Tuesday morning in the copper roof of the Old Stock Exchange, or Boersen, spread through much of the building and the roof, parts of which also collapsed, and destroyed the interior of the building, fire spokesman Jakob Wedstedt Andersen said.
“The fire is still not under control,” Wedstedt Andersen said, adding that half the building was destroyed and collapsed. He said there was no danger of the fire spreading to other buildings. Firefighters said they expect to be on the scene for the next 24 hours.
Tommy Laursen of Copenhagen police said it was too early to say what caused the fire and that they would be able to enter the building in “a few days”.
Firefighters, who were reportedly pumping water from a nearby canal, were seen spraying water through the door of the gilded hall of the Old Stock Exchange, which is used for gala dinners, conferences, parties and other events and where many of the paintings hung.
Smoke rises from the old stock exchange, Boersen, in Copenhagen, Denmark, Tuesday, April 16, 2024. (Emil Helms/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)
The building, which is located next to Christiansborg Palace, where the parliament sits, is a popular tourist attraction and has been photographed millions of times. Its distinctive spire, in the shape of the tails of four dragons entwined together, reaches a height of 56 meters (184 ft).
Huge plumes of smoke rose over central Copenhagen and people were seen rushing into the building to save paintings. The plume could be seen from southern Sweden, which is separated by a narrow waterway.
Ambulances are on the scene, but there are no reports of injuries. A spokesman for the company working to renovate the building said all the carpenters who had been working on the roof had walked out.
Up to 90 members of an army unit were also deployed from a nearby base to cordon off the area and “secure valuables”, Denmark’s armed forces said.
King Frederik wrote on Instagram that they “woke up to the sad sight” of “an important part of our architectural heritage” destroyed by the flames.
Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen wrote that “irreplaceable cultural heritage” and “a part of Danish history are on fire”.
“It hurts to watch,” Frederiksen wrote on Instagram.
The building and spire were encased in scaffolding, which later collapsed in the fire. The roof, masonry, sandstone and tower of Boersen – built in 1615 and considered a leading example of the Dutch Renaissance style in Denmark – have been renovated, said the Chamber of Commerce, which moved into the building after the Copenhagen Stock Exchange left in 1974. d. the chamber is the owner of the building.
The adjacent Christiansborg Palace has burned several times, most recently in 1990 when a fire broke out in an annex of the Danish Parliament known as Proviantgarden. However, the old stock exchange survived unscathed.
This annex, which is located in the block behind the Old Stock Exchange, was evacuated as a precaution, as were various ministries in the street behind the burning building.
Police said on social media platform X that a major road in Copenhagen was closed and people should expect the area to be cordoned off for some time. Several bus routes were rerouted and Danish media reported major traffic jams in the surrounding area.
Queen Margrethe, who turned 84 on Tuesday, has toned down celebrations because of the fire, broadcaster TV2 said. A band from the Royal Life Guards was due to play for the former monarch outside Fredensborg Castle, where she has been staying for the spring and summer, but this was cancelled.
