Amsterdam's landmark Vondelkerk — a church built in 1872 overlooking Vondelpark — was gutted by a major fire in the early hours of New Year's Day as authorities dealt with widespread unrest across the Netherlands.
Fire and Damage
Dutch emergency services say the blaze began just before 1 a.m. local time on Jan. 1. Firefighters battled the inferno for roughly ten hours before declaring it under control at about 11 a.m. By then the church's 164-foot neo-Gothic spire had collapsed and only the outer walls remained intact, according to local reports.
Laurens Niezen / ANP / AFP via GettyThe Vondelkerk up in flames
Historic Context
The Vondelkerk was designed by Pierre Cuypers, the architect also associated with Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum. Built in 1872 and used as a Roman Catholic parish for nearly a century, it was later deconsecrated and repurposed for secular events. The structure previously suffered a destructive fire in 1904 that destroyed its original tower.
Casualties, Injuries and Investigation
Officials initially reported no casualties from the church fire; the cause remains unknown and is under active investigation, authorities said. Separately, the chaotic New Year celebrations saw deadly fireworks incidents: local media cited by the BBC reported a 17-year-old boy and a 38-year-old man were killed in separate incidents.
Ana Fernandez/SOPA Images/LightRocket via GettyThe Vondelkerk's tower before the fire
Nine Kooiman, chair of the Dutch Police Union, wrote on X: "Unprecedented amount of violence against police and emergency workers. Lots of explosives/fireworks aimed at the colleagues. Myself already pelted three times."
National Unrest and Emergency Response
Dutch police described the New Year's violence as "unprecedented," reporting that emergency lines were overwhelmed and officers and first responders were targeted with explosives and fireworks. Authorities made around 250 arrests nationwide, and police in cities such as Utrecht reported repeated attacks by groups of young people.
Medical services reported a surge in burn injuries. A burn unit in Groningen treated 19 patients after the celebrations, including ten children under the age of 15 — about double the number treated there after last year's New Year events.
Next Steps
Investigations into the cause of the Vondelkerk fire and the wider disturbances are ongoing. Dutch outlets including RTL and De Telegraaf have covered the events extensively, with international reporting by The New York Times and the BBC.
Sources: Local Dutch media (De Telegraaf, RTL), The New York Times, BBC.
