London‘s tallest skyscraper was evacuated on Thursday following reports of smoke in the building’s basement.
According to Twitter reports from the building’s management and the London Fire Brigade, the Shard was evacuated at around 10:30 am on Wednesday as the building’s fire alarms went off. Ambulances and at least ten fire trucks reported to the location as approximately 900 people exited the building.
Emergency services are responding to a fire alarm at The Shard. Evacuation procedures have been followed & we are ready to assist as needed.
— TheShardLondon (@TheShardLondon) June 5, 2014
We have been called to reports of smoke in the basement of The Shard. We were called at 10.30am. More soon.
— London Fire Brigade (@LondonFire) June 5, 2014
Dozens of firefighters entered the building to investigate the cause of the smoke in the building’s basement and the London Fire Brigade sectioned off a 50 meter perimeter around the building. Despite the alarm, no signs of fire were discovered and the smoke began to dissipate later Thursday afternoon.
Workers were allowed back into the building after the smoke had cleared shortly before 3 pm.
There is no more smoke in The Shard's basement. People will soon be allowed back inside the building and crews will be leaving the scene.
— London Fire Brigade (@LondonFire) June 5, 2014
UPDATE All smoke has now dissipated. There was no fire in the building and all tenants and guests of The Shard are now re-entering.
— TheShardLondon (@TheShardLondon) June 5, 2014
Despite the false alarm, the smooth evacuation served as proof that the building’s evacuation procedures are sound. Workers in the building reported that the evacuation took around 30 minutes. No injuries were reported as a result of either the smoke or the evacuation. A London Fire Brigade station manager told the BBC that the evacuation, which could have impeded firefighter progress, was “quite a quick and easy process.”
Worth noting the exceptionally professional and switched on staff & management at @TheShardLondon. Makes huge difference.
— Insp K J Robbins (@KelvinJRobbins) June 5, 2014
In addition to being London’s tallest skyscraper, the Shard is also the tallest building in the European Union. The building was completed in 2012 and replaced an entire office block in the city’s London Bridge Quarter.
Image via London Fire Brigade