Miyajima’s Reikado Hall Fire: What the Loss of a Sacred Wooden Landmark Reveals About Heritage Risk
This event is more than a local incident: it is a case study in the fragility of sacred wooden heritage,...
Management
Worship Centers Under Fire: From Japan’s Atago Shrine to Mozambique’s St. Louis de Montfort Church
Fire is arguably the greatest single threat facing cultural heritage. In 2026, this risk is increasingly concentrated in worship centers:...
The Montenach Fire: A Case Study in WUI Risk for Cultural Heritage
The fire that destroyed the Saint‑Cyriaque church in Montenach (Moselle, near the French–Luxembourg border) on April 30, 2026 is a...
Heritage Safety in the Age of Compound Risk
Historic buildings and cultural sites are no longer exposed to one dominant threat at a time. In recent months, this...
Why Cultural Heritage Safety Engineering Still Struggles to Be Recognised
Why universities, heritage institutions, and project governance still fail to treat it as a discipline in its own right In...
Temporary use and events in heritage buildings: hidden fire risks before, during, and after opening
Why temporary use is a distinct fire-risk phase The Cappella della Sindone fire is the clearest case to quote because...
When Fire Strikes the Memory of Lesser-known Communities
Fires don't just erase homes and landscapes: they can destroy archives, symbolic places, and traces of local identity that will...
Teotihuacán Shooting: a Warning for Heritage Security
On 20 April 2026, a shooting at the Teotihuacán archaeological site in Mexico turned a major heritage destination into the...
Fire Risk during Renovation of Historic Buildings
Historic buildings under renovation are often at their most fragile the moment we believe they are being “made safer.” Several...
Fire Safety in Cultural Heritage Buildings: Beyond Compliance, Toward Protection
Fire is arguably the greatest single threat facing cultural heritage. From the catastrophic 2018 fire at the National Museum of...
Why Cultural Heritage is Still Missing from Too Many Civil Protection Plans
Emergency and civil protection planning is undergoing a significant transformation. Public authorities and response agencies are increasingly supported by digital...
Buffer Zones: War vs. Wildland Fire Protection
The UNESCO-listed Golestan Palace sustained damage from airstrikes, which shattered precious mirrors. This occurred despite the target of the attacks...
Historic Saint-Paul Church Fire, Montreal (Canada): Total Loss
Early Monday 23 February 2026, ~1:40am, a fire engulfed the former Saint-Paul Church (Sud-Ouest borough, Montreal). The historic church, converted...
Comprehensive FireRiskHeritage Guide for Historic Timber Structures Safety
Historic timber structures represent one of the most vulnerable yet essential components of architectural heritage. From medieval cathedral roofs spanning...
Natural Heritage on Fire: Lessons for Built Heritage Professionals
Historic buildings nestled in forests, parks, or scrubland increasingly face wildfire threats amplified by climate shifts, as evidenced by 2025–2026...
Montreal: when a Forgotten Industrial Landmark burns
In the early hours between 20 and 21 January 2026, a major fire tore through the former Barsalou/Familex factory in Montreal, a...
Fire Safety Lessons from the 2026 Crans-Montana Bar Fire for Heritage and Historic Venues
The New Year’s Eve fire at Le Constellation in Crans-Montana is a tragic reminder that crowd-intensive venues in heritage settings...
Christmas Markets under Pressure: from Terror Plots to “Ordinary” Disasters
Across Europe, Christmas markets are more than seasonal shopping events. They are recurring public rituals that each year re‑occupy historic...
The Laborie Estate Fire – Heritage Resilience and WUI in Paarl (South Africa)
Date of Incident: December 20, 2025 Location: Paarl, Western Cape, South Africa Site Classification: Grade II Provincial Heritage Site (Cape Dutch Werf) Laborie Wine...
Why Cost–benefit Analysis matters for Historic Buildings
When deciding how to protect a historic building, it is not enough to ask “Is this measure technically effective?” The...
Rebuilding a Canadian Heritage Village with Fire-Resilient Principles
On June 30, 2021, during a record-breaking heat dome, the Village of Lytton, British Columbia (Canada) — home to about...
Suspicious Fire Destroys Abandoned Church in Scotland
The overnight fire that on December 7, 2025 engulfed the 182-year-old Pollokshaws Parish Church on Shawbridge Street serves as a...
