Fire at the Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba caused little damage

The fire that broke out this Friday at the Mosque-Cathedral of Córdoba, Spain , caused minimal damage, occurring in an area of lesser heritage value, reports El Mundo . The three firefighting teams that responded to the scene were familiar with the monument, thus avoiding a situation like the one that occurred at Notre-Dame in 2019.

The alert was raised at 9:15 PM (8:15 PM in Lisbon) and had been brought under control by 10:00 PM, preventing it from spreading to other areas of the Mosque. However, by 9:20 PM, the flames had already reached the roof, prompting firefighters to delimit the risk perimeter and prevent the fire from spreading to the naves of the temple, which are covered with centuries-old wooden planks. The outbreak and the weight of the water eventually collapsed the roof of the Chapel of the Annunciation, located on the east side of the monument.

Damage was also reported to the chapels of Saint Nicholas of Bari and the Holy Spirit, which were saved by a hole in the nave roof that allowed a hose to be inserted and cool the beams. "The beams blacken on the outside. A crust forms from the heat, but the wood can burn on the inside. That's why it was so important that, after extinguishing the fire, which was done in a very reasonable time, we remained vigilant, because the flames could reignite anywhere," explained Agustín Moreno Bravo, head of the Security Commission of the Chapter of the Cathedral Mosque.

After the Notre-Dame Cathedral fire in 2019, unprecedented response protocols were activated. Every year, firefighters conduct a fire drill at the monumental complex to anticipate the possibility of a fire. The last one occurred last winter: "Thanks to the regular fire drills, the firefighters were familiar with the monument," said Daniel Muñoz, fire chief. The fire was reportedly caused by a short circuit in an electric broom stored in a small warehouse on one side of the Chapel of the Annunciation.

The Cathedral opened to the public on Saturday, but with the affected areas cordoned off.