Fire engulfs Copenhagen's historic stock exchange building

A fire tore through Copenhagen's 17th-century old Stock Exchange, one of the Danish capital's most iconic buildings, on Tuesday morning.

The blaze engulfed its iconic 54-meter spire, which collapsed onto the roof. It brought about memories of the similar 2019 blaze that engulfed Paris' iconic Notre Dame Cathedral, which also lost its spire as a result.

The Copenhagen Exchange fire began on the roof, collapsing parts of it as it quickly spread, a Fire Department spokesman said. About half of the building was destroyed.

No injuries were reported on Tuesday, and the cause of the fire is unknown.  

Several streets and the area around the building have been cordoned off. Police asked people to avoid driving in the inner part of the city.

Danish emergency services said on Tuesday afternoon that the fire was "under control" and that they were working on the "final extinguishing" of the blaze.

The building hosts several hundred pieces of art and artifacts including paintings, mirrors, chandeliers and timepieces. Priceless paintings by Denmark's Peder Severin Kroyer, a 19th-century impressionist, were among those saved from the fire.

Footage showed people rescuing large paintings from the burning building. Thick smoke and towering flames billowed from the structure.

What has the reaction to the fire been?

Danish Culture Minister Jakon Engel-Schmidt said it was "touching" to see how passers-by helped emergency services "to save art treasures and iconic images from the burning building."

"A piece of Danish history is on fire," Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen wrote on Instagram, saying that it hurt to see the loss of such "irreplaceable cultural heritage."

The Dutch Renaissance-style building no longer houses the Danish Stock Exchange, but it serves as the headquarters of the Danish Chamber of Commerce.

Brian Mikkelsen, chief of the Danish Chamber of Commerce, described the incident to reporters as "a national disaster." He nevertheless reassured that they had been able to "rescue a lot."

"It's our cultural heritage that I'm looking at. It's 400 years that have shaped Danish cultural history and the society we live in today," he added.

King Frederik wrote on Instagram that "an important part of our architectural heritage" was being destroyed. "This morning we woke up to a sad sight," he wrote.

What do we know about the building?

The historic building was completed in 1625 and is one of the oldest in Copenhagen. Its spire was shaped like the tails of four dragons intertwined, symbolizing the protection of the gold that trade would generate for Denmark.

The spire also had three crowns at the top, symbolizing the kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden.

It has been hosting the Danish Chamber of Commerce since the stock exchange left in 1974.

"We are witnessing a terrible spectacle," the Danish Chamber of Commerce said in a statement on Tuesday morning.

The building had been under renovation when the fire broke out. It is covered in scaffolding.

The aim of the restoration is to correct the previous work carried out in the 19th century and to restore the facade of the building to its original appearance.

dh/rm (AP, AFP, dpa, Reuters)