Video: Fire at Iraqi embassy in The Hague; Nearby school also evacuated
A large fire broke out in the Iraqi embassy in The Hague on Monday morning. The fire department evacuated the building as well as the adjacent school. Firefighters are still fighting the blaze, which is causing a lot of smoke.
The fire brigade received the first reports of the fire at around 11:00 a.m. They responded to the embassy on Johan de Wittlaan and quickly scaled up to a “very large fire.”
“We are still extinguishing the fire. There is a lot of smoke and people in the area must keep windows and doors closed and turn off the ventilation,” a spokesperson for the fire brigade told Omroep West shortly after 12:00 p.m.
About an hour later, the municipality of The Hague announced that the authorities also evacuated the Christelijk Gymnasium Sorghvliet, which is located near the embassy on the same street.
The emergency services cordoned off a large area around the building, to give them room to work.
Scaffolding is erected around the embassy. The fire brigade spokesperson could not tell Omroep West whether this work was linked to the fire, but thought not. “I think they are painting. And we are extinguishing a fire inside.”
