Fire prompts evacuations at UN climate talks in Brazil, but officials say no one hurt

BELEM, Brazil (AP) — A fire spread through pavilions being used for UN climate talks in Brazil and prompted evacuations Thursday on the next-to-last day of the conference but nobody was hurt, officials said.

Organisers said the fire was under control and caused no injuries. Firefighters and security teams responded promptly and continue to monitor the site.

Brazil's Tourism Minister Celso Sabino told journalists at the scene that the fire started near the China pavilion, which was among several pavilions set up for events on the sidelines of the climate talks.

The fire quickly spread to neighbouring pavilions, said Samuel Rubin, one of the people in charge of an entertainment and culture pavilion. He said nearby pavilions include many of the Africa pavilions and one aimed at youth.

Rubin said he was at his pavilion with his team when they saw flames a couple pavilions down. He said people started grabbing fire extinguishers as the room filled with smoke.

Fire also was reported at a health and sciences pavilion, said Victoria Martins and Júlia Aguiar, technical personnel with the event.

Associated Press journalists covering the event were among those evacuated from a media centre.

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