Berlaymont Fire Under Control

A fire erupted around lunchtime on Monday in the European Commission’s Berlaymont building in Brussels, forcing the evacuation of thousands of bureaucrats. Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso had to walk down the stairs from the top floor of the 13-floor building.

“In a case like this, you don’t use elevators,” Barroso’s spokesman Johannes Laitenberger told AP.

The Brussels fire department managed to bring the fire under control by the end of afternoon. The exact cause remains unclear.

The building, which was reopened five years ago, was evacuated. About 2700 people work in the building. This footage was filmed by EUobserver Editor Lisbeth Kirk.

According to TheParliament.com, the blaze was thought to have originated in the basement, with black smoke pouring out of the ventilators on top of the building.

One report suggested that the fire started in the basement kitchen.

The basement also is home to the audiovisual services of the European Commission and the Europe by Satellite service, known as EbS. The EbS website said its services were suspended.

“DUE TO A FIRE IN THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION BUILDING EbS TRANSMISSIONS HAVE BEEN SUSPENDED,” the site says.

At a press conference by the end of the afternoon, EU Commission spokespeople said the cause of the fire was still underdetermined, and that the Brussels fire fighters were still investigating the building with heat-detecting cameras.

The fire was first reported by journalists working in the basement press room at 12.50 hours, while the first security checks were carried out at 12.55. At 13.05, the fire alarm on the 13th floor triggered evacuation of the building.