Head of historic building praises firefighters for avoiding disaster

The fire at the historic Somerset House could have ended in “complete disaster” if not for the efforts of staff and fire service, the Trust director has said.  

As previously reported by the FPA, 125 firefighters and 20 fire appliances from the London Fire Brigade (LFB) were mobilised after a major blaze broke out at the popular arts venue in central London last month. The fire resulted in considerable damage to the roof and part of the building’s west wing.

Jonathan Reekie, director of Somerset House Trust, has since thanked staff and firefighters for their efforts in tackling the fire and preventing its further spread.

"I think I can say that if that fire hadn't been spotted and tackled as quickly as it was by the extraordinary emergency services, this could have been a complete disaster.

"Very luckily, it didn't become a kind of Notre Dame or Glasgow School of Art,” he told PA News.

In 2019, a devastating fire at Paris’ Notre Dame led to the building’s spire and roof collapsing. Work to replace the spire and wooden frame took five years, with the restored spire unveiled in March 2024. The Glasgow School of Art also succumbed to a blaze in 2014, destroying the library of the Charles Rennie Mackintosh building. With reconstruction plans underway, a second fire broke out in 2018, with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service confirming that the damage to the building was “exceptionally significant”.

The cause of the fire at Somerset House is still unknown, with LFB stating that an investigation is currently underway.

In a statement released on Tuesday 20 August, three days after the fire broke out, Somerset House confirmed that parts of the venue had been reopened: “Saturday’s fire was successfully contained to one part of the building. London Fire Brigade’s operation onsite has ended, and its investigation will continue.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the individual firefighters of the LFB, the emergency services, and our staff for ensuring everyone’s safety and preventing much greater destruction.

We have been very moved by expressions of support from around the world over the last few days, which has served as a reminder of how cherished Somerset House is as an arts destination and the home of cultural innovators, housing its unrivalled creative community of talented individuals and enterprises.”

Speaking about the reopening, Reekie explained that reconstruction work could take “years”:

"We focused on how to get the building back on its feet, how to get people back into the building. I think in terms of the majority of what we do, we're talking about a few more days.

"Of course, the reconstruction will be months, if not years," he said.