a fire broke out at a building in beirut designed by zaha hadid architects. located in the city’s souk area, the mixed-use development was damaged by the devastating explosion that killed nearly 200 people on august 4, 2020 and was undergoing repairs when the fire started. at the time of writing, no cause had been given for the start of the fire, although an investigation is already underway.

 

 

arab news reports that firefighters were able to quickly bring the blaze under control with al jazeera adding that there were no immediate reports of injuries. footage shared on social media shows the side of the building facing the hilton hotel on fire with plumes of smoke rising above the site. al jazeera adds that the blaze was the third fire in the area within a week following two recent fires at the port of beirut.

 

 

‘the value of the damage was up to $7 million, and with this fire, the damage must have doubled,’ abdul rahman sultan, the owner of the steel company that was working on the implementation of the design of the building’s façade, told arab news. the zaha hadid architects-designed project, which is set to include retail and residential spaces, was due for completion in 2019, but has since suffered numerous delays. the video at the top of this article is courtesy of ruptly, coverage begins at 27:00.