Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York City

29 June 2023 , 14:36
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Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany
Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York City

A huge fire broke out in the newly-refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York today.

The cause of the fire is still unknown as multiple crews tackled the flames at the Tiffany & Co site in the Manhattan area.

Two people have been injured in the blaze, it is reported. Employees were immediately evacuated from the store.

The Mirror's Yelena Mandenberg is on the scene, where firetrucks line 5th ave, between 56th and 57th streets, after an electrical fire broke out at the landmark Tiffany's store in Nyc.

An employee confirmed that an electrical fire broke out between 9 and 10 am in the basement of the store. All employees were immediately evacuated and no current injuries are known.

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Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York CityTiffany's New York fire: Huge blaze tears through refurbished building on Manhattan's Fifth Avenue (Daily Mirror)
Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York CityFirefighters put out the blaze (Handout)

The Mirror has reached out to the FDNY to confirm, but no extra ambulances were called to the scene. It took the fire department nearly two hours to put out the blaze, with the trunks pointed into the vent from outside that leads to the basement.

The building was evacuated and the signature bright blue Tiffany's security stanchions was used to keep the public from the scene.

Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York CityAs of noon, almost all the fire trucks are gone (Handout)
Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York CityThe facade and displays of the building appear intact (Handout)

Tourists and passersby haden't noticed that an entire landmark was billowing smoke for half the mornings - it was business on 5th Avenue as usual, with a few tourists stopping to snap photos of the black burn mark outside the front door."

At nearly noon, firetrucks began leaving the scene as some crew members stayed behind to clear the area.

Luckily it doesn't look like the fire damaged, with the facade and displays still intact.

Tourists have gathered to watch this morning's events with coffee and a croissant in hand in a modern-day twist on the classic movie that likely brought them to the area.

As of noon, almost all the fire trucks were gone with any imminent danger over.

Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York CityA fire is torching through parts of the newly-refurbished Tiffany & Co. building (Twitter/@212COOCHIE)
Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York CityIt remains unclear how the fire broke out or if there are any injuries (Twitter/@212COOCHIE)

Just a few NYPD cars were left to guard the area, while one last truck pumped out the water from the basement that they had to pour in.

Employees were let back into the building as the scene was wrapped up at around 12:15pm.

The blaze was reported in the landmark store at 727 Fifth Avenue on Thursday morning, with photos showing firefighters from the FDNY working to extinguish the blaze.

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Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York CityPhotos show FDNY firefighters battling the blaze at 727 Fifth Avenue (Twitter/@seththeile)
Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York CityA fire is torching through parts of the newly-refurbished Tiffany & Co. building (Twitter/@212COOCHIE)

The building had recently undergone an extensive and expensive renovation and was reopened in April.

Witnesses reported that buildings around 57th Street may lose power due to the fire.

The building shares a block with the Trump Tower.

Medics have confirmed that two people have suffered minor injuries, according to the Citizen.

According to a Fire Service report, the fire broke out at 727 5th Avenue, located between East 56th and East 57th Street.

Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York City (Yelena Mandenberg)
Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York City (Yelena Mandenberg)

First responders have confirmed that the fire started with a high-voltage transformer in the basement of the building.

It is not confirmed whether it has spread to other parts of the building as of yet.

The report reads: "The incident took place in the basement of a commercial building that spanned 10 stories and measured 85x125 in size.

"At 09:43, Battalion 8 transmitted a 10-75 alarm, indicating the severity of the situation.

Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York City (Yelena Mandenberg)
Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York City (Yelena Mandenberg)

"They reported a fire in the story occupied by Tiffany's and promised to provide further details soon.

"Ladder 4 was assigned as the FAST unit, responsible for ensuring the safety of the firefighters.

"By 09:45, Battalion 8 updated that the fire seemed to originate from a high voltage electrical transformer. They urgently requested a response from Con-Ed, the local electric utility company, to address the issue.

Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York City (Yelena Mandenberg)
Huge blaze tears through refurbished iconic Tiffany's building in New York City (Yelena Mandenberg)

"At 09:47, Battalion 8 informed that there was smoke in the basement but confirmed no spread to the rest of the building had occurred so far.

"By 09:53, Battalion 8 instructed the personnel to notify Con-Ed about an active fire in a sidewalk transformer.

"In the following minute, at 09:54, Battalion 8 made a request for a Purple K unit, specifically Engine 33 equipped with Purple K (a dry chemical fire suppressant)."

Celebrities including Katy Perry, Hailey Bieber, and Blake Lively attended the grand reopening.

LVMH, a European luxury brand conglomerate, acquired Tiffany for $16 billion in 2021, and the renovation costs were estimated to be around $500 million.

Bernard Arnault, LVMH's chairman and owner, did not confirm the exact figure during an interview earlier this year.

According to Forbes, Bernard Arnault is currently the richest person in the world with a net worth of $211billion.

Vassia Barba

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