Dozens of houses near the church, designed by Dutch architect Pierre Cuypers, were evacuated in the early hours of the morning. Emergency services predict they will be able to return to their homes throughout the day.
The historic Vondelkerk church in Amsterdam, a building from the end of the 19th century and a national monument in the Netherlands, was destroyed in the early hours of today by a fire, which forced the evacuation of nearby houses, but left no injuries.
The fire started around 01:00 (00:00 in Lisbon), in the church tower, which stopped being used as a church in 1977 and was converted into a multipurpose center, according to the Dutch news agency NOS.
The fire, which was still not under control by firefighters at 9am today, did not affect the structure of the building, which remained intact.
Although the official cause of the incident is unknown, some residents told NOS that they saw fireworks near the church tower, where the fire started, although the fire department has not confirmed this information.
Dozens of homes near the church, designed by Dutch architect Pierre Cuypers, were evacuated in the early hours of the morning and residents took shelter at a nearby yoga center. Emergency services predict they will be able to return to their homes throughout the day.
