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Fire breaks out at Córdoba’s ancient mosque-turned-cathedral La Mezquita Firefighters save Córdoba’s historic mosque-turned-cathedral La Mezquita
(about 2 hours later)
Heritage site was built as a mosque in the 8th century before Spanish royalty turned it into a Christian church Blaze at heritage site, built as a mosque in the 8th century before being turned into a church, quickly contained
A fire has broken out in the historic mosque-turned-cathedral of the Spanish city of Córdoba. Videos online show flames and smoke coming from inside the major tourist attraction. A fire broke out in the historic mosque-turned-cathedral in Córdoba on Friday but the monument was saved as firefighters quickly contained the blaze, the Spanish city’s mayor has said.
Firefighters deployed to La Mezquita-Catedral on Friday evening later said the blaze was “under control” but it had not been extinguished. Widely shared videos had shown flames and smoke billowing from inside the tourist attraction visited by 2 million people a year.
Local media reported the blaze broke out when a mechanical sweeping machine caught fire in one of the chapels at about 9pm, and then spread to the roof. The extent of the damage was not immediately clear. “The monument is saved. There will be no spread, it will not be a catastrophe, let’s put it that way,” José María Bellido said on Cadena television.
The fire brigade had earlier said the fire was under control but not extinguished.
The spectacular blaze broke out at about 9pm (8pm UK time), raising fears for the early medieval architectural gem and evoking memories of the 2019 fire that ravaged Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.
ABC and other newspapers reported that a mechanical sweeping machine had caught fire on the site.
Considered a jewel of Islamic architecture, the site was built as a mosque – on the site of an earlier church – between the 8th and 10th centuries by the southern city’s then Muslim ruler, Abd al-Rahman, an emir of the Umayyad dynasty.Considered a jewel of Islamic architecture, the site was built as a mosque – on the site of an earlier church – between the 8th and 10th centuries by the southern city’s then Muslim ruler, Abd al-Rahman, an emir of the Umayyad dynasty.
After Christians reconquered Spain in the 13th century under King Ferdinand III of Castile, it was converted into a cathedral and architectural alterations were made over following centuries.After Christians reconquered Spain in the 13th century under King Ferdinand III of Castile, it was converted into a cathedral and architectural alterations were made over following centuries.
The Unesco-listed heritage site received two million visitors in 2024, according to its website.
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