The blades of the Moulin Rouge windmill, one of the most famous landmarks in Paris, have collapsed, firefighters have said, just months before the French capital hosts the Olympics.
There was no risk of further collapse, Paris firefighters said after the incident overnight.
“Fortunately this happened after closing,” a Moulin Rouge official told Agence France-Presse on condition of anonymity.
“Every week, the cabaret’s technical teams check the windmill mechanism and did not note any problems,” the source said, adding that there was no more information on the reason for the collapse.
They said it was the first time such an accident had happened since the cabaret first opened on 6 October 1889.
Moulin Rouge: les ailes tombées cette nuit sont en train d'être évacuées pic.twitter.com/LUeU5hOgK0
— BFMTV (@BFMTV) April 25, 2024
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Images on social media showed the blade unit lying on the street below, with some of the blades slightly bent.
The Moulin Rouge, at the foot of the Montmartre hill in northern Paris, is one of the most visited landmarks in the city and is known as the birthplace of the can-can dance.
The only serious accident at the venue was a fire during works in 1915, which forced it to close for nine years.