A deconsecrated Amsterdam church built roughly 150 years ago was engulfed in flames in the early hours of New Year’s Day, prompting widespread evacuations and causing extensive damage to the cultural monument. There were no initial reports of casualties.
The fire at the Vondelkerk broke out at around 12:45 a.m., according to the local authorities, sending flames shooting through its historic neo-Gothic spire.
The blaze swiftly ravaged the Vondelkerk’s roof and collapsed its tower, and strong winds blew sparks and burning debris into the surrounding area, according to the area’s safety department. The authorities reported that the fire had been brought under control by roughly 11 a.m. and, citing a structural engineer, said the church walls would remain standing.
The cause of the fire was not yet known, and a police and fire department investigation, which was set to begin on Thursday, could take weeks, said Marco de Leeuw, a spokesman for the Amsterdam-Amstelland Safety Region, which is responsible for fire and emergency services.
The blaze occurred during New Year’s celebrations, and there had been many fireworks in the area, spurring speculation online that they could have caused the disaster.
Mr. de Leeuw said that there was no sign that anyone had been in the church at the time of the blaze and that no deaths were expected to have resulted from the fire. By around midday on Thursday, firefighters had not yet entered the church itself because it was still deemed unsafe to do so.
Nearby homes were evacuated overnight, and their power supply was cut off. A makeshift shelter was set up to house the displaced, taking in dozens of people at one point in the night, according to a website run by the local authorities.
The fire came amid a push to stop at-home firework displays across the Netherlands. Fireworks are already banned in Amsterdam and other major cities, and sales will be banned across the country starting in 2026.
The Vondelkerk was built in the 1870s, according to Stadsherstel, a local urban restoration group, and was once used for Catholic worship. It had fallen into disrepair by the late 1970s and was renovated for use in cultural events and other functions. Pierre Cuypers, the Dutch architect responsible for Amsterdam’s famed Rijksmuseum and Central Station, designed the structure.
This is not the first fire to hit the church: The original spire was lost in a 1904 blaze, according to Stadsherstel.
Jeanna Smialek is the Brussels bureau chief for The Times.
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