Fire destroyed a part of bivouac
A fire started in the kitchens of the Dakar bivouac due to the explosion of a neon light. It was rapidly put under control by the organisation and local authorities. No harm or injuries were sustained. Just after the fire Pascal Feryn phoned us ... "It was a short but heavy fire" says Pascal Feryn. "Something caught fire in the kitchen who's just standing in a row pavilions. The pavilions are in a row of 100 m on 100m, in a kind of U format. In two minutes everything was burning. The fire was strenghten by the wind. After five minutes it was over, but there was nothing left. There were motorcyclist sleeping. We awakened them. No one's is injured, but some of the motorcyclist lost a lot of material like helmets and boots. 20 minutes after the fire the fire department arrived. What will happen now, I don't know. There are 1200 peoples waiting to eat something but there's nothing left. I don't know what will happen right now". Also Patrick Beckers saw the fire. "There was no panic, no one's injured but there's a bit of chaos right now. Everything what was there of pavilions is gone. The kitchen, the pavillion for the drivers to eat. Nobody has eaten, and tomorrow is a long and big day. At 10 pm Belgian time the organisation will come with a statement. Wait and see what will happen."