Fire Erupts at COP30 Climate Summit Venue: A major accident was narrowly avoided on Thursday at the important UN COP30 climate summit being held in Belém city of Brazil. A sudden fire broke out at the main venue of the meeting, creating chaos among thousands of delegates. Security teams immediately responded and safely evacuated all the attendees, including UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and India’s Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav. Due to this incident, the work of the summit was disrupted for some time and now there is uncertainty over its timely completion.

Major accident at COP30 site, thousands of people ran to save their lives

A fire broke out at around 2 pm (local time) on Thursday in the ‘Blue Zone’, the main venue of the ongoing COP30 summit in Belem, Brazil under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). All high-level meetings, negotiations, country-wise pavilions and media centers are located in this area.

The news of the fire spread like wildfire and seeing the black clouds of smoke rising, thousands of people ran towards the exit doors to get out. The UNFCCC Secretariat immediately issued an advisory directing everyone to vacate the venue. After the fire, black smoke rising from the makeshift tent could be seen from several kilometers away, a frightening sight.

13 people got hurt, but all the big leaders are safe

In this incident, 13 people had trouble breathing due to smoke and were treated on the spot. The UN COP30 Presidency and UNFCCC confirmed this in a joint statement and said the situation of the injured was being monitored.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres was present in the Blue Zone at the time of the fire. The team of United Nations Security Department (UNDSS) took them out safely without any delay. Similarly, India’s Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav and the Indian delegation were also in the Blue Zone, but a ministry spokesperson said they were all safe.

rescue team action

The joint statement said the fire department and UN security officials responded immediately and the fire was brought under control within about six minutes. A security official said the fire did not affect the ‘green zone’ where various exhibitions are held. Minutes after the fire was extinguished, heavy rain began to fall in Belém, adding to the hardships faced by the thousands of attendees standing outdoors.

order to vacate the premises

During the incident, a headcount was initiated, with all UNSMS (United Nations Security Management System) organizations confirming that their staff were safe. The fire chief of the host country ordered a complete evacuation of the entire complex so that a safety check could be conducted. The UNFCCC later issued an updated bulletin, commending the rescue team and delegates for their prompt evacuation. He informed that the venue would not reopen before 8 pm.