The night of December 31 to January 1 was restless in the Netherlands, especially in Amsterdam. A major fire broke out shortly after midnight in the bell tower of the Vondelkerk, a 19th-century church in the Amsterdam West district. The disaster spread quickly through the structure: the bell tower, part of the nave and the roof collapsed under the flames. Dozens of residents had to be evacuated as a precaution. By early morning, the fire was under control; the walls of the building remained standing, and no injuries were reported.
Dutch Culture Minister Gouke Moes called the fire a “great loss for the Netherlands “. He said he was happy that no casualties had been reported and announced that the Heritage Agency (Rijksdienst voor het Culureel Erfgoed) would assess to what extent the monumental elements of the church could be saved.
The exact cause of the fire remains to be determined. There is no evidence to suggest a voluntary act. The police have opened an investigation, but the hypothesis favored by the authorities and experts is that of an accident linked to New Year’s fireworks.
The Vondelkerk church in Amsterdam on January 1, 2026, the day after its fire.
This fire occurs in a tense context. Street fires were lit and homemade explosives or fireworks targeted police and firefighters. The president of the Dutch police union, Nine Kooiman, denounced violence “unprecedented” against relief.
In 2025, following the numerous accidents and deaths linked to this practice, the Dutch government voted to ban fireworks for individuals from 2026. According to the Dutch Pyrotechnics Association, a record sum of 129 million euros was spent on the purchase of fireworks for December 31.
Inaugurated in 1880, the Vondelkerk is a neo-Gothic church designed by the architect Pierre Cuypers (1827-1921), famous for the Rijksmuseum and Amsterdam Central Station. Victim of a fire in 1904, it was rebuilt identically using the original plans of Pierre Cuypers. Deconsecrated in 1977, the building was almost demolished before being saved by the mobilization of local residents attached to its preservation. Listed as a national heritage site, the building has since been converted into a cultural and event venue, before resuming religious activity in 2017.
