It is a gray and sad day in Copenhagen, the day after the shocking fire in the iconic Børsen building.
The fire service is still working hard on Wednesday. Both with extinguishing, and to prevent the building from collapsing further. Photo: Liselotte Sabroe / Ritzau Scanpix
Wednesday 17 April at 12:40 p.m
On Wednesday morning, personnel from three fire stations were still working hard at the scene.
Fredrik Ryber, head of operations in the capital’s emergency department, tells VG that the roof and floors in the part affected by the fire have collapsed.
– In half the building, only the walls and gables remain. The rest is on the ground floor. We try to support the outer walls with containers, which we stack on top of each other to relieve the outer walls, says Ryber.
- The fire service is still working hard on Wednesday. Both with extinguishing, and to prevent the building from collapsing further.
- The fire service is still working hard on Wednesday. Both with extinguishing, and to prevent the building from collapsing further.
The fire service is still working hard on Wednesday. Both with extinguishing, and to prevent the building from collapsing further. Photo: LISELOTTE SABROE / AFP
Photo: LISELOTTE SABROE / AFP
The fire service is still working hard on Wednesday. Both with extinguishing, and to prevent the building from collapsing further. Photo: Liselotte Sabroe / Ritzau Scanpix
The building is still burning, and Ryber tells of difficult conditions where the fire service has to use cranes to lift away the collapsed building masses to reach the fire. Wind in the area also makes the fire flare up again.
– No matter what
The characteristic, long brick building was formerly a commodity exchange and was completed in 1625. It was undergoing restoration when the fire broke out.
Historical paintings have also hung in the building, which is now used as offices.
According to the National Antiquities Directorate for Cultural Environment Management, the building was important for Norwegian trade in the 17th century.
– It is unbelievably sad to see the dramatic fire that is now affecting one of the most important cultural monuments in Denmark, said national antiquarian Hanna Geiran on Tuesday.
- Photo from when the building was fully engulfed in flames on Tuesday.
Photo from when the building was fully engulfed in flames on Tuesday. Photo: Ida Marie Odgaard / EPA / NTB
Photo: Ida Marie Odgaard / EPA / NTB
Photo: Mads Claus Rasmussen / EPA / NTB
Despite the enormous damage, it is said that the building will be rebuilt:
– We have decided in the board that “no matter what”, we are going to rebuild Børsen, says managing director Brian Mikkelsen in Danish businessOwner of the Stock Exchangeaccording to Ritzau.
For the building that has been referred to as Denmark’s Notre-Dame, this could turn out to be an expensive and lengthy process:
– It will be very complicated to restore the building, but we are doing what we can to save the expression and the outer walls, says Ryber.
Dansk erhverv has not yet responded to VG’s inquiry.
Brian Mikkelsen
Managing director of Danish business
Dangerous effort
The capital’s emergency services do not have an overview of which valuables were rescued from the inferno, but Ryber’s information from Tuesday indicates that several hundred photos and furniture are involved. Danish TV 2 writes that 400 objects were rescued.
– It was a massive effort to rescue objects, says Ryber.
– Wasn’t that dangerous, considering that the floor has now collapsed?
– It was dangerous work. Therefore, we have had many task managers who have focused on safety. It is still an unstable construction, replies Ryber.
- The painting “From the Copenhagen Stock Exchange” by Peder Severin Krøyer was carried out of the burning building. Here we see Brian Mikkelsen on the left.
The painting “From the Copenhagen Stock Exchange” by Peder Severin Krøyer was carried out of the burning building. Here we see Brian Mikkelsen on the left. Photo: IDA MARIE ODGAARD / AFP / NTB
Photo: IDA MARIE ODGAARD / AFP / NTB
Despite the efforts, several of the valuable paintings may have sustained damage:
– There may have been a lot of damage. Fire is not the only damage. There may be soot, blisters or bubbles where the canvas has peeled off, says Rikke Bjarnhof to Danish TV 2. She is head of department for conservation at the Royal Academy Education for architects, designers and conservators in Copenhagen. .
Bjarnhof explains that the pictures may also have been damaged when they were hurriedly rescued.
– Washed the smoke out of my hair
– I washed the smoke out of my hair this morning. A terrible day yesterday. Infinitely sad. But Børsen is rising again. Dansk Erhverv is rising again, writes Morten Langanger, director of Dansk Erhverv, on X.
Denmark’s Minister of Culture, Jakob Engel-Schmidt, shares the grief:
– I will do everything I can to ensure that the dragon spire will once again tower over Copenhagen, as a symbol of Denmark’s strong history as a trading nation. Thank you to the hundreds who have contributed to saving Denmark’s cultural heritage and history, writes Engel-Schmidt.