Massive Fire Tears Through Olympic Park
Dramatic video footage showed flames tearing across the venue’s roof.
AP
A fire erupted on Wednesday morning at Rio de Janeiro’s Olympic Park velodrome, sending thick smoke over the former 2016 Games venue and triggering a major emergency response. Authorities said around 80 firefighters and 20 vehicles were dispatched to battle the blaze, which was largely contained to the structure’s fabric roof. Dramatic video footage showed flames tearing across the venue’s roof. Officials said the fire was brought under control and that there were no reported injuries. The interior of the building—including the Olympic Museum—was not damaged, according to the Rio state military fire department. Investigators are still working to determine what caused the blaze, but the venue has seen similar incidents before. Two separate roof fires were reported there in 2017, both linked to paper sky lanterns. Built for the 2016 Rio Olympics, the velodrome hosted track cycling events during the Games and has since been used as a training base for Brazil’s national cycling and weightlifting teams.
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