Brazil Mourns National Museum Fire That Destroyed 20 Million Artifacts

Brazil was in mourning on Monday, September 12, for the National Museum that suffered a fire which turned twenty million historical documents and artifacts into a pile of ashes. The beloved museum building, which housed very important historical works, was not equipped with a fire sprinkler system and had suffered from budget shortages for years, making such a disaster seem imminent. The building, once a royal palace with a yellow facade, stood on its feet at the end of the fire on Monday, but looking through its massive windows, one could see that its ceiling had completely collapsed, the walls of all its halls were burned and blackened, and its ceiling beams had melted. Occasionally, a firefighter would emerge from the building with an object or a panel they had managed to save from the flames. Officials say the cause of the fire, which began on Sunday evening, is still unclear. Researchers, students, and others who worked in the museum gathered around the building, weeping and comforting each other. It is likely that more than 20 million documents and archives of the museum were destroyed in this fire. This fire has deeply affected the emotions of the Brazilian people, who are dissatisfied with the country's dire economic situation, widespread corruption, and rising violence, especially on the eve of an unpredictable presidential election in October. Luiz Duarte, the deputy director of the National Museum of Brazil, told Globo TV that central governments have always neglected this museum, and the strange thing is that part of the five million dollar budget approved three months ago for the building's restoration was for the installation of modern fire protection equipment. The head of the Rio de Janeiro fire department told reporters on Monday that two fire water tanks near the building were empty. As a result, firefighters had to transport water from a lake and use water-carrying trucks. However, the building burned very quickly, and none of these measures were effective. He added, 'In an ideal situation, we should have had many facilities and tools, none of which were available, including a fire sprinkler system inside the building.' He stated that the fire department would investigate how to deal with this fire and would take legal action if necessary. Renato Cabral, a geology professor, said, 'Yesterday was one of the saddest days of my professional career. The destruction of the museum did not happen overnight. This disaster was on the verge of happening at any moment.' He added, 'Brazilian governments do not allocate budgets for such matters and do not invest in infrastructure.' 'The wiring of the building was renovated about 15 years ago, but it is clear that there was no plan for fire protection for the building. The only thing firefighters could do was watch the fire.' 'This is a complete disaster for Brazil's history and science. There is no way to revive what has been destroyed and lost.' The National Museum of Brazil's collection included archaeological artifacts to historical objects. This museum, whose building is adjacent to the Federal University and the Ministry of Education, was established in 1818. Michel Temer, the President of Brazil, stated in a statement, 'The destruction of the museum is an incalculable loss for Brazil. Two hundred years of work, research, and knowledge have been lost.' His office refused to respond to multiple claims regarding the central government's negligence.