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FIRE

Courchevel blaze: ‘There were people in tears… it was chaos’

Two people died Sunday and 25 more were injured, four seriously, in a fire at the ski resort of Courchevel in the French Alps, officials said.

Courchevel blaze: 'There were people in tears... it was chaos'
Photo: AFP
The pre-dawn blaze forced the evacuation of some 60 resort workers, including foreigners, from a three-storey accommodation building.
   
Firefighters found the two unidentified bodies in a burnt-out area of the building in the upmarket Courchevel 1850 ski station.
   
Three of the four badly injured were flown to hospital by helicopter, the local officials said.
 
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The cause of the fire was not immediately known.
 
“Some young people escaped down the facade of the building using the balustrades. Some of them were in their underwear,” said one witness, who identified himself as Victor, 27.
 
Titi, a private minicab driver who was at the scene “within minutes” told Le Parisien: “I saw people stuck on the top floor. Some managed to come down through the railings, but others had to jump to escape the flames.”
 
“There were people in tears, lost, some could not bring warm clothes. It was chaos.”
 
Eric Boix-Vives, the owner of a supermarket “arrived there at 5:30 am”.
 
“There were flames everywhere, people who were being evacuated under covers,” he said.  
   
The blaze had already devoured the top two floors of the building by the time firefighters arrived, fire service spokesman Emmanuel Clavaud said.
   
Around 70 firemen working at the scene brought it under control by daybreak.
   
Interior Minister Christophe Castaner tweeted condolences to the families and friends of the dead and paid tribute to the firemen who tackled the blaze.
   
Courchevel is one of the most chic resorts in the French Alps, with numerous Michelin-starred restaurants and luxury chalets.

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FIRE

Situation ‘unstable’ at Copenhagen’s old stock exchange after fire

Three days after a fire which ravaged Copenhagen's historic former stock exchange broke out, emergency services said Friday that the situation was "unstable" due to equipment issues and a strong breeze.

Situation 'unstable' at Copenhagen's old stock exchange after fire

In the morning, during work to dismantle the scaffolding surrounding the building, a crane’s cutters came loose for as of yet unknown reasons.

It is currently wedged between the scaffolding — put up for the renovation of the historic building that was ongoing — and what remains of the walls.

“It is affecting our efforts”, Tim Ole Simonsen, leader of the operation at the rescue services, told a press conference.

Coupled with the wind picking up, the incident, which has temporarily halted work on dismantling the scaffolding, has made the situation “unstable”.

“The wind is blowing harder and harder, and there are tarps over the scaffolding that can catch the wind,” Simonsen said.

He added that this increases the risks, in particular of further collapse of the burnt-out facade which started collapsing late Thursday afternoon.

Located close to the Christiansborg parliament and seat of government, the Borsen building was commissioned by King Christian IV and built between 1619 and 1640. It was the stock exchange until the 1970s.

The fire began Tuesday morning under the copper roof of the building, which was undergoing renovations ahead of its 400th anniversary.

The cause of the blaze was unknown and Copenhagen police said Wednesday that a major investigation had been launched.

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