NOSThe burned-out building in Alkmaar
NOS News•yesterday, 20:08•Adjusted today, 00:08
The fire in a shopping centre in Alkmaar is under control, reports the Safety Region. On Friday evening around 23:00 the fire brigade gave the signal ‘fire under control’. The fire brigade is still busy with the extinguishing and the demolition of the building.
The fire raged for hours on Friday night in the shopping centre on the Europaboulevard. The apartments above were evacuated because of the fire. Clouds of smoke could be seen from a great distance above the city.
Shortly after 7:00 p.m., a fire broke out in a Kik branch, which sells clothing and household items. Later, the fire spread to an adjacent building. As far as is known, all employees of the clothing store were able to get out in time and there were no injuries, although someone was checked in an ambulance.
Police have arrested two teenage girls. They are suspected of involvement in the fire. According to police, they were seen earlier in the evening at a smaller fire that had started in a Decathlon branch.
Shortly after the outbreak of the smaller fire, a message was sent via Burgernet to look out for two teenagers “around 16 or 17 years old”. They were only found by the police after the outbreak of the large fire in the shopping centre.
NL-Alert
Due to the fire, the Safety Region also sent an NL-Alert to people in the area, advising them to close windows and doors and to turn off mechanical ventilation.
The residents of the evacuated apartments have mostly been housed with family or friends, says the Safety Region. A nearby community center has been opened for those who had nowhere to go. A spokesperson for the Safety Region could not say how many apartments were evacuated.
The fire brigade was busy extinguishing the fire this evening:
Fire in Alkmaar shopping center
