The emergency services rushed to Akershus fortress in central Oslo on Saturday evening, after they received a report of a fire in a building there.
– We have arrived with a patrol. There are open flames at the site and some black smoke. It is possibly connected to the ventilation system, there is a restaurant there, operations manager Marita Aune told TV 2 at 7pm.
RAN OUT: The fire service is present at Festningen restaurant with eleven cars and smoke divers on Saturday evening. Photo: Terje Pedersen / NTB
Several evacuated
– It burns well and smoke from the roof. There is a certain size of the fire, she added.
Aune states that the extinguishing work will probably continue for several hours. Difficult extinguishing conditions are reported for the fire service.
In the 20th century, the Oslo police write on Twitter that the smoke is increasing.
– But the smoke still seems to be rising into the air instead of moving towards the centre, the message says.
13 people have been evacuated, the police say. All are checked by health personnel present and one has been sent to the emergency department for a further check.
– There is a lot of fire in the cladding, which has climbed up into the roof structure. As of now, no injuries or missing persons have been reported, the police wrote to the press.
Operations manager Aune tells TV 2 that there is no risk of spreading to other buildings.
Arvid Norstrand of the Oslo fire brigade confirms at 19.10 to TV 2 that they have no control over the fire.
– We do not have control over the fire as of now. We are there with eleven cars and have initiated internal smoke diving night. There is smoke development in the entire roof structure.
General manager Stig Olle Friberg at Festningen Restaurant tells TV 2 that he is not present, but has been informed about the fire.
– I don’t know what has happened. I have no comment either, says Friberg.
Listed building
The building was originally built as a prison in 1836. Since then, the house has been used as a laboratory kitchen and office building.
It was Forsvarsbygg that started the renovation project and decided that the building should be used for restaurant operations. In autumn 2013, Festningen opened a restaurant in the old prison at Akershus fortress.
Gøran Sæther, managing director of Fursetgruppen, which owns and operates the restaurant, tells TV 2 that the building the restaurant is in is listed.
– That’s right, it is subject to Defense Building and Akershus Fortress.
The National Archives also confirms to TV 2 that the building is listed.
– It was protected on the outside in 2014, but not on the inside, says the press officer at the National Archives.
The police received the first report at 18.34 via the fire service. The first police patrol was on the scene at 18.42, and by then the fire brigade was already on the scene.
