Danish firefighters on Tuesday tried to prevent the collapse of the historic building of the former Copenhagen Stock Exchange, dating from the 17th century.e century, engulfed in flames and whose emblematic spire collapsed in front of stunned Danes.
The 54 meter high spire collapsed in flames early in the morning and firefighters were trying to save the structure of the building which was undergoing renovation work.
“The facades are still standing, but they are starting to give way under the effect of the fire,” said the director of the emergency services, Jakob Vedsted Andersen, at midday.
“We do everything possible to protect the facades, but we cannot give any guarantees,” he added.
The fire broke out for an unknown reason under the roof around 7:30 a.m. local time (1:30 a.m. in Quebec), according to emergency services who dispatched more than a hundred firefighters to the site, while the police blocked parts from the capital to traffic.
The fire caused no injuries and there is no risk of spread to other buildings.
“We woke up to a sad sight,” Danish King Frederik X said in a statement, “an important part of our architectural heritage was and still is in flames.”
“It hurts the soul of the Danes, years of history are consumed in the flames,” added Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen to Danish public television.
A local resident, Elisabeth Moltke, 45, came to witness the disaster: “it’s our Notre-Dame, it’s our national treasure,” she told AFP, moved.
Copper roof
Many trucks surround the building which now houses the Danish Chamber of Commerce, a stone’s throw from Parliament and the seat of government.
“It’s a copper roof, and it’s simply impossible to get in,” the rescue director said earlier.
“The fire therefore had plenty of time to intensify and spread throughout the building,” he explained.
A must-see building in Copenhagen, the Old Stock Exchange, which also houses a vast collection of art works, was being renovated to celebrate its four centuries of existence.
“Terrible images [en provenance] of the Stock Exchange this morning. 400 years of Danish cultural heritage in flames,” lamented the Danish Minister of Culture, Jakob Engel-Schmidt on the social network
Forces from the Danish army, Den Kongelige Livgarde, were also dispatched to the scene, in particular to try to save works.
Reconstruction
“I don’t have the words. It’s a 400-year-old building that survived all the other fires that ravaged Copenhagen, it’s a terrible loss,” said resident Carsten Rose Lundberg.
“We are currently working hard to save our historic art from the Stock Exchange,” said the Chamber of Commerce.
Copenhagen Mayor Sophie Haestorp Andersen has already announced that together with the Chamber of Commerce they will “try to rebuild the building”.
The building is part of “the history of the construction of our city, a history that we cannot leave in a sea of flames, and that is why we will also do everything we can to rebuild it here,” she added.
Several people were filmed and photographed saving works, including a painting representing the building, according to images from Danish media DR and photos from the Ritzau agency.
“How touching it is to see how Børsen employees, good people from the emergency services and the people of Copenhagen are working together to save the artistic treasures and iconic images from the burning building,” added the Minister of Culture .
Commissioned by King Christian IV, the Copenhagen Stock Exchange was built between 1619 and 1640, making it one of the oldest buildings in the city.