Danish firefighters were still at work extinguishing the last pockets of a fire that destroyed a 400-year-old Copenhagen landmark a day after the blaze began, The Associated Press reported Wednesday.
Morten Langager, manager of the Danish Chamber of Commerce, which was headquartered in the Old Stock Exchange and owned the building, said the building, built in 1615 and known for its green copper roof and distinctive 56-meter spire in the shape of four intertwined dragon tails, should “rise again.”
No decision has yet been made about whether the city will reconstruct the building, which would cost millions, if not billions of kroner (dollars).
Many in Denmark compared Tuesday’s fire to the April 2019 blaze at Notre Dame that destroyed the 800-year-old cathedral’s spire. Its restoration is slated for completion this year.
The head of the Danish Chamber of Commerce, Brian Mikkelsen, told Danish media that most of the building's most valuable contents had been saved. The building contained priceless paintings and other works of art, AP reported.
When the fire engulfed the building on Tuesday, passers-by, Chamber of Commerce staff, police officers and members of an army unit that had been sent to help raced inside the building to save its treasures.
The extent of the damage, caused by flames and the tons of water poured to extinguish them, was still unknown, as was the cause of the fire, which is believed to have started on the building's roof during renovations on Tuesday morning.
Huge billows of smoke rose over downtown Copenhagen and could be seen from southern Sweden, which is separated from the Danish capital by a narrow waterway. Ambulances were at the scene but there were no reports of casualties.
Smoke damage closed ministries located in the street behind the Old Stock Exchange, which remained shut Wednesday as employees were told to work from home because of a strong smell of smoke in the buildings.
The buildings must be thoroughly cleaned and their ventilation systems must be checked and perhaps replaced before ministry staff can return, said Rasmus Brandt Lassen, head of the Danish Building and Property Agency.
“We have told them that they should expect to work at home for the rest of the week,” Brandt Lassen said.
