Overview
- Residents first spotted flames and thick black smoke late Sunday night and alerted the fire brigade, which deployed at least ten engines to the Lyons Range office block.
- Firefighters worked through the night and early morning to douse the blaze, using smoke detectors and gas masks to find hot spots and carrying out cooling operations until small pockets of fire were extinguished.
- Officials say the blaze appears to have started on the fourth floor and spread rapidly, and several offices were gutted with documents and computers destroyed in preliminary assessments.
- No casualties were reported because the fire occurred after hours, and authorities have begun a formal inquiry that will determine the exact cause and examine internal firefighting systems and electrical safety.
- The building’s location directly behind the Writers’ Building raised public concern because some government departments still operate in the historic secretariat and the incident could prompt tighter safety checks in the area.