A massive fire that broke out at Egypt’s El Gouna Film Festival on Wednesday is now under control, organizers have confirmed.
Shortly after the fire broke out, dramatic videos of the incident were posted on social media.
Watch: A massive fire has broken out in the main hall of the El Gouna Film Festival site in Egypt, one day ahead of the opening ceremony, according to local media reports. #GFF https://t.co/13Z78ZM5ik pic.twitter.com/J1HYCjLSj8
— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) October 13, 2021
“El Gouna Film Festival Management announced the control of a fire that broke out in El Gouna Conference and Culture Center. The fire damaged a small part of the hall prepared to receive the opening activities of the festival,” the festival management said in a statement. “Once the fire broke out, El Gouna Film Festival Management coordinated with the Civil Protection Forces to send fire trucks in cooperation with the El Gouna firefighting forces to control the fire.”
“The festival management has also immediately opened a detailed investigation to find out the causes of the accident, which is suspected to be a short circuit,” the statement added.
The festival also tweeted a recording in Arabic from Samih Sawiris, chair of festival parent company Orascom Development Holding, which reiterated the statement.
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Statement from the Chairman of Orascom Development Holding Eng Samih Sawiris:
“The 5th edition of the El Gouna Film Festival will proceed as planned.”
GFF extends its gratitude to the Civil Defense Forces and the Red Sea Governorate for their immense help… pic.twitter.com/b6ybBbSpTQ
— El Gouna Film Festival (@ElGounaFilm) October 13, 2021
The opening press conference of the festival is going ahead on Wednesday afternoon local time as planned.
The fifth edition of the festival is scheduled to take place Oct. 14-22 in the Red Sea resort town of El Gouna.
International selections at the festival include Stéphane Brizé’s “Another World,” Audrey Diwan’s “Happening,” Michel Franco’s “Sundown,” Teemu Nikki’s “The Blind Man Who Did Not Want to See Titanic,” Juho Kuosmanen’s “Compartment No.6,” Zhang Yimou’s “One Second,” Antoneta Alamat Kusijanović’s “Murina,” Dénes Nagy’s “Natural Light” and Maria Schrader’s “I Am Your Man.”
