The national stadium in Andorra was on fire with a portion of the artificial pitch being destroyed ahead of Andorra vs England
Ahead of the Andorra vs England FIFA World Cup qualifier scheduled for Sunday, the national stadium in the country which will be the venue of the matchup saw a colossal fire broke out in the premises.
Fire Breaks Out In National Stadium Ahead Of Andorra vs England FIFA World Cup Qualifier Match
While the fire was eventually brought under control and doused, the artificial pitch which is to be used for the showdown took heavy damage. The surface around the touchline and technical area was seen damaged by the fire which managed to extend atleast a foot onto the pitch.
Andorra’s on fire pic.twitter.com/srGSAyqXcQ
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A dugout was also partially melted during the fire which first broke out in the broadcast gantry. While sprinklers were initially roped in to contain the fire, things soon got out of control as a thick layer of black smoke engulfed the stadium and apartments situated behind the premises.
The fire took place only moments after England had trained at the 3,300 seater Estadi Nacional located in the territory of the captain Andorra La Vella. Fire brigades and local police rushed to the scene to tackle the fire with no casualties being reported.
The metal structure and walls which were trapped in gusts of the scorching fire were all damaged and blackened with a VAR monitor being completely destroyed. While the cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, authorities in Andorra are confident of their match going ahead as planned.
“The main thing is that there weren’t casualties or injuries. We are working on it so the game can be played tomorrow. Planning continues same as before. “There is only material damage,” said Andorran FA president Felix Alvarez.
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