A huge fire has engulfed Copenhagen’s old stock exchange, one of the Danish capital’s most famous landmarks, causing its spire to collapse as staff and citizens scrambled to rescue paintings and historic artifacts from the blaze.
“I cannot describe how upset my colleagues and I are,” said Brian Mikkelsen, CEO of the Danish Chamber of Commerce, which owns and has offices in the 17th century building. “It is a huge disaster because it is 400 years of cultural history that is in flames.”
Stunned commuters and onlookers watched as the raging fire could be seen swirling around the building’s distinctive 56-meter spire, moments before it collapsed and fell into the street below.
Some passersby even joined emergency services to run inside the burning building and help carry large Renaissance paintings and other objects away from the blaze. Among the paintings saved was Danish artist Peder Severin Krøyer’s 1895 work “From the Copenhagen Stock Exchange,” the Chamber of Commerce said.
Denmark’s Deputy Prime Minister, Troels Lund Poulsen, called the fire “our own Notre Dame moment,” referring to the blaze that destroyed the roof and spire of the Paris cathedral, five years ago almost to the day.
The fire began at around 8.30 a.m. local time (2.30 a.m. ET), a Copenhagen fire department chief told CNN, and by 11 a.m. nearly half of the building had been destroyed. The fire was still burning by late afternoon.
The Chamber of Commerce said it is “at a loss for words for how great a tragedy this is.” It said it was “a sad day for our country” and that “the damage will unfortunately be very expensive.”
“We have tried to rescue a lot of historic paintings that were inside the building and the historic furniture,” said Jakob Vedsted Andersen, an executive director at the Greater Copenhagen fire and rescue service. He said it was “way too soon” to speculate about the causes of the blaze.
Copenhagen police have told people to avoid the area, and there have been no reported injuries so far. People who were in the building when the fire started were all safely evacuated, said a police spokesperson, who added that military personnel were at the scene to support the firefighting efforts.
A “piece of Danish history” is on fire, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said, calling the building’s cultural heritage “irreplaceable.”
The Børsen building has been at the heart of Danish business since the 17th century. The old stock exchange, located only a few minutes walk from Christiansborg Palace, dates back to 1625. It was built in the Dutch Renaissance style at the request of King Christian IV and had recently been undergoing renovations with its facade covered in scaffolding and protective coverings.
Denmark’s culture minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt said 400 years of cultural heritage had been damaged.
“How touching it is to see how the employees at Børsen, good people from the emergency services, and passers-by work together to rescue art treasures and iconic images from the burning building,” he added in a post on social media.
Emergency services were working to control the fire, but it had spread to all floors through the elevator shaft. Frank Trier Mikkelsen, operations manager at the Greater Copenhagen fire department, said the fire is burning “violently” inside the building. Forty firefighters were inside, with valuables being rescued.
Mikkelsen told the Danish broadcaster that the fire is of a type that emergency managers dread. He explained that parts of the building’s roof need to be removed to extinguish it, and machines have been called in to remove some of the copper roof, as the water just bounces off it.
The future implications of this devastating fire at Copenhagen’s old stock exchange could have far-reaching effects on the preservation and protection of cultural heritage. The loss of 400 years of history highlights the vulnerability of historic landmarks and the urgent need for improved fire safety measures. With recent incidents like the Notre Dame fire in Paris, it is clear that more needs to be done to safeguard these valuable sites.
As countries around the world grapple with the challenges of preserving their cultural heritage, emerging trends in technology and firefighting techniques offer hope for preventing such tragedies in the future. Advanced fire detection and suppression systems, along with innovative architectural designs, can help minimize the risk of fire-related disasters.
Furthermore, increasing public awareness and involvement in the protection of historic buildings is crucial. The heroic actions of passersby and emergency services in rescuing valuable artworks from the burning building demonstrate the power of community engagement in safeguarding cultural treasures.
In light of this incident, it is recommended that governments and heritage organizations invest in the development of sustainable fire safety strategies for historical sites. This includes regular fire risk assessments, adequate training for personnel, and implementing modern technologies to monitor and respond to potential fire hazards.
By adopting a proactive approach to heritage preservation, we can better protect these invaluable landmarks for future generations. The loss of the Copenhagen old stock exchange serves as a stark reminder of the fragility of our cultural heritage and the pressing need to prioritize its safeguarding against the threat of fire.