A fire forced organizers of the UN’s COP30 climate talks in Belem in northern Brazil to empty the site on Thursday.
Reporters and other attendees were sent a circular note saying there was a “fire incident in Zone B,” and asking them to “evacuate the venue immediately.”
A siren sounded inside the venue signaling participants to move for the exits.
Police officers formed up into lines to prevent people from approaching the affected area.
What do we know about the fire at COP30?
Tourism Minister Celso Sabino said on Brazilian television soon after that “the incident has already been contained.”
“Firefighters and security teams responded promptly and continue to monitor the site,” Brazil’s COP30 organizers said in a statement.
The site will not reopen before 8 p.m. local time (11 p.m. GMT), the organizers said, adding that there had been “limited damage.”
They also said 13 people were treated for smoke inhalation as a result of the blaze.
Officials later said the venue reopened on Thursday and that negotiations would resume on Friday morning.
Final phases of two-week summit
The two-week global climate summit, drawing in tens of thousands of people from around the world, is reaching its final phases.
The nominal last day is Friday, November 21, but in past years, extensions seeking a consensus on a pledge or pledges among various national governments have been common.
The summit had already missed a self-imposed deadline of Wednesday to reach agreements on issues like how to increase climate finance and forming a roadmap to move away from fossil fuels, implying delays could be possible even before Thursday’s fire.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres had urged negotiators to “engage in good faith” and seek an “amibitous compromise” in comments earlier on Thursday.
“The world is watching Belem,” he told reporters at a morning news conference. “Communities on the frontline are watching, too — counting flooded homes, failed harvests, lost livelihoods, and asking, how much more must we suffer?”
Edited by Karl Sexton
