111 firefighters managed to control the flames that ravaged the town hall of Annecy, Thursday, November 14. It is now necessary to secure the building and protect it from the rain.

The fire "accidental" origin, which was declared Thursday noon at the town hall of Annecy, was "mastered" Friday, November 15 and the security of the building was in progress, was learned from from the town hall and the prefecture.

The fire had started from a short circuit in an electrical cabinet on the third floor of this building, counting four, and it had spread quickly, via the electrical ducts, to the top floor and the attic, devouring the wooden frame and generating spectacular flames, but without doing any injury.

Important fire at the town hall of Annecy (74), flames escape from the roof. Firefighter intervention in progress. pic.twitter.com/mHqDr3nr5D

- Matthieu Desmoulins (@MatthDes) November 14, 2019

111 firefighters

"At the height of the crisis, 111 firefighters" were hard at work and "60 of them continue to be present on the site with 6 fire hoses," said the prefecture.

The fire is considered "under control despite the presence of some residual foci in the difficult to access areas" of this building which housed some 300 municipal employees.

"Extinguishing water has infiltrated the floors, firefighters are currently working to dry the premises," said the prefecture. The sheeting of the building was in progress, to protect it also from the rain.

"Symbol of the city"

On a practical level, "the urgency is to reconnect the public service for the delegated municipality of Annecy, because we are dematerialized enough", it was argued at the town hall. Agents were able to "recover the servers in the building and now they must be reconnected". Traffic restrictions were lifted except for access to a tunnel.

The damage is significant: the roof has almost completely burned, the two upper floors have been greatly affected, while the first two floors where are the reception rooms were affected by water and collapsing floors, according to Jean-Luc Rigaut, UDI Mayor.

"Dismayed", the apostle had seen as his constituents go up in smoke "the symbol of the city". Back to Lake Annecy, the stone building imposes with its neo-classical style of the mid-nineteenth century, its central front-body columns and triangular pediment, framed by two pink floors. A popular architecture of the Italian Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia which depended at the time Savoy.