The fire brigade started on Monday evening with the demolition of an empty building in Zoetermeer. A fire has been burning there since noon. By partially demolishing the building, the fire brigade can enter the building and extinguish the fire better, a spokesperson for the Haaglanden Security Region told ANP news agency. This will probably take until Tuesday morning.
The fire in the building on Boerhaavelaan broke out around 2.30 p.m. The flames shot out of the roof and there was a lot of smoke. The fire could be seen from miles away from The Hague, Nootdorp and Pijnacker. The cause of the fire is not yet known.
Two people were taken off the roof. They were taken to hospital for a check-up. What they did on the roof is unknown. It was dangerous to get close to the building, and the fire brigade continued to extinguish the fire from a relatively large distance. “There is still fire in some parts of the building. We have to demolish it to get to it,” said the spokesperson.
Two NL-Alerts
Due to the smoke nuisance, an NL-Alert was sent at around 4 p.m. Two hours later it happened again. Residents were advised to close windows and doors and to turn off ventilation. The Alerts have been withdrawn, but the advice to residents remains in effect.
No dangerous concentrations were found during measurements. However, there may be odor nuisance, says the fire service.
According to Omroep West, this is not the first time that a fire has broken out in the building. There were already two fires in 2017 and again in 2021. It was unclear at the time what caused it.
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