‘We are devastated’: Huge fire destroys oldest food market in Paris

A massive fire has destroyed Marché des Enfants Rouges in Paris, the capital’s oldest covered food market.

Emergency services were called to the scene in the city’s 3rd arrondissement at approximately 4.15am on Monday and arrived to find the market totally ablaze, local media reported.

More than 150 firefighters and 50 emergency vehicles were deployed to tackle the fire, which consumed approximately 1,000 square metres of space and caused at least two-thirds of the market’s metal structure to collapse.

Paris Centre mayor Ariel Weil confirmed on X that while the fire was brought under control by morning, the market had been “ravaged” and was “totally destroyed.”

“The covered market has been completely destroyed. There is nothing left,” Lieutenant-Colonel Pierre de Bouvier told French news outlet BFMTV, noting that flames were already scorching “the entire covered market” when firefighting crews reached the scene.

Fire crews worked through the morning to prevent the inferno from spreading to adjoining residential buildings along Rue de Bretagne.

No civilian casualties were reported, though one firefighter received medical attention at the scene after feeling unwell, according to emergency services.

Founded in 1615 under King Louis XIII, the site derived its name — “Market of the Red Children” — from a nearby 16th-century orphanage where children wore red uniforms.

Listed as an official historic monument in 1982, the covered market in the Haut-Marais district housed fresh produce stalls, florists, and international food stalls.

Authorities have urged the public to avoid the surrounding area while emergency crews pick through the wreckage to ensure no further risk of fire.

French authorities have opened an official investigation to establish the cause of the fire, which currently remains unknown.