Smoke filled the sky over central Copenhagen and thick orange flames stood out in the middle of the iconic building surrounded by scaffolding. This Tuesday morning, around 8 a.m., the police were alerted that a fire had broken out at Borsen, the historic Stock Exchange in the Danish capital, where the Chamber of Commerce is now located.
This institution, located on the island of Slotsholmen not far from Christiansborg Castle which houses the Parliament, was commissioned by King Christian IV and built between 1619 and 1640. It is one of the oldest buildings in the city. Under the powerful fire, the imposing 54 m high spire in the shape of a spiral formed by the tails of four dragons collapsed. Images reminiscent of the disappearance of the spire of Notre-Dame de Paris, just five years ago.
“400 years of cultural heritage” gone up in smoke
Skynews reports that several people entered the building to remove large paintings. At this time, the causes of the fire are not yet known. Law enforcement and firefighters asked residents to move away from the area.
“We are facing a terrible spectacle,” responded the Danish Chamber of Commerce Dansk Erhverv. “The stock market is on fire. Everyone is asked to stay away from the area around Slotsholmen. The firefighters are on site.”
These are “400 years of Danish cultural heritage that have gone up in smoke,” responded the Minister of Culture, Jakob Engel-Schmidt. The Danish embassy in France also reacted on the social network
The old stock exchange has repeatedly escaped fires that affected the surrounding area, notably in 1990. As the English television channel Skynews reminds us, the Borsen is not open to the public but often hosts gala dinners and various events. . It has no longer hosted the capital's stock market activities since the 1970s.