Some visitors had to evacuate Saturday when a fire erupted at Walt Disney World’s EPCOT park in Orlando, Florida.
Smoke was seen over the France Pavilion around 7:00 p.m. and the park’s officials said people were safely evacuated from the “Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure,” ride, the New York Post reported.
The fire began from a walk-in cooler in a backstage area, a Walt Disney World spokesperson explained, according to Click Orlando. The individual also noted the fire was quickly extinguished and no one was reportedly hurt as a result.
Video footage taken by someone in the park shows the fire behind a large fence as people stood looking at it:
“Officials say EPCOT was in the midst of hosting the International Flower & Garden Festival when the fire initially started,” the Post article read.
More video footage shows the moment singer Peter Noone was performing for his audience and noticed the fire in the distance.
He turns to the crowd and says, “France is on fire,” then goes back to singing:
The park closed the French Pavilion due to the fire and reopened it at 8:20 p.m., then closed at the scheduled time of 9:00 p.m., according to People.
More video footage captured different views of the smoke as the fire continued:
Officials are now investigating what exactly caused the fire. Meanwhile, a witness relayed their experience on the Walt Disney World’s Tips and Tricks social media group page, according to People.
“Everyone is physically ok, I believe. We had just gotten on the skyliner at Pop Century to Epcot … and watched it unfold,” the person said, adding, “At one point the smoke was drifting into the path of the skyliner, and I was worried our cabin was going to fill with smoke.”
The fire erupted during the park’s busy spring break season when people come to enjoy the attractions.
