Fire breaks out in Istanbul's historical Haydarpaşa train station

A fire broke out Sunday in Istanbul’s historical Haydarpaşa train station, engulfing the landmark building’s roof in flames and posing a threat to the entire structure.

The blaze, which started at around 3 p.m., grew quickly in a short time but was brought under control after about one hour. Istanbul Gov. Hüseyn Avni Mutlu arrived at the scene after the fire was under control and said there had been no injuries or deaths.

The entire roof of the building was destroyed by the flames and some parts of the structure’s top story collapsed, private channel NTV reported.

According to Selami Öztürk, the mayor of the city’s Kadıköy district, the fire started during repair work on the roof of the station, which is located on Istanbul’s Anatolian side, and extended down to the fourth floor of the structure.

Talat Aydın, a Transportation Ministry official, confirmed that repair work was being done on the building and said the extent of the damage would become clear after an examination. Aydın also said the roof did not collapse, indicating that the fire had not affected other stories of the building.

Believing that the entire structure could be at risk, authorities evacuated the scene, sending curious onlookers back to their homes. Train services in the station were halted due and both personnel and passengers were removed from the building as a security precaution.

Coastal security teams, ambulances and police all responded to the fire, which filled the air with heavy black smoke that reportedly reached across the Bosphorus to the Ortaköy neighborhood on the European side of the city. Fire teams arriving from nearby districts such as Kadıköy, Üsküdar, Erenköy and Kartal tried to put out the fire using cranes and extinguishing foam.

Mutlu said he would make a statement about the cause of the fire after examining the incident.

Built in 1908 as the starting point of the Istanbul-Baghdad railroad, the Haydarpaşa station was previously damaged by fire in 1917 after ammunition stored in the building during World War I was sabotaged.

The building is a first-class monumental structure, said Eyüp Muhçu, the head of Turkey’s Chamber of Architects, who noted that the historical station was constructed above 220 wooden columns and expressed doubts about the response to the blaze. “Helicopters could have intervened on the scene within 10 to 15 minutes,” he said. “I can’t make sense of why authorities didn’t think of this. This attitude naturally brings suspicions to mind.”

Istanbul authorities previously suggested a major architectural transformation project that would reconstruct the historic Haydarpaşa train station by demolishing the Haydarpaşa Port, a proposal that has received criticism from some circles in the city.


/Hurriyet Daily News/