Reedy Creek Fire Department has responded to the Epcot park in Walt Disney World after reports of a fire breaking out in the Norway pavilion.
Click Orlando has reported that a fire did break out on Wednesday afternoon in the Norway pavilion and Reedy Creek Fire Department did respond. Apparently, the fire started in a construction area behind the pavilion, and not in an area where guests were.
Numerous fire trucks were on the scene and the whole area was evacuated of all guests for a period of time. The shops, attraction areas, and Akershus restaurant were all evacuated while the scene was brought under control.
Epcot Cast Members did block the entire entrance to the Norway pavilion off for a period of time, but it has since reopened to guests. There does not appear to be any severe damage to any visible structures, and no injuries have been reported at this time.
WESH reported that it isn’t yet certain how the fire started in the backstage construction area, and no real damage was reported back there either. The firefighters responded to the Norway pavilion around 4:20 p.m. on Wednesday.
Reports had started going out on social media that the entire Epcot theme park was shut off to guests and no one was being allowed to enter for a while. Those reports have turned out to be false and at no point did Disney find it necessary to close the entire park.
Currently, the Norway pavilion is under a lot of construction as the Maelstrom attraction closed late last year and is being totally remodeled. An attraction called “Frozen Ever After” based on Disney’s hit movie Frozen is what the ride is being changed into.
Also, next door to the Norway pavilion, construction is being done to build an entire new area that will house a meet-and-greet location with Anna and Elsa from Disney’s Frozen .
The construction on the pavilion and surrounding areas has been ongoing for almost a year now, and they are expected to open in late spring of 2016. According to Disney, the fire was not big enough nor strong enough to cause a lot of damage and delay anything.
As the damages are assessed and checked out, there will be more information on any issues.
For now, the situation with the fire at the Norway pavilion in Epcot is under control, and the area is open once again to all guests. Walt Disney World has long been known for having emergency crews nearby in case of any situations such as this.
[Image via Disney/Click Orlando]
