Then in Zoetermeer: ​​5 x burns that made the news

Large band in Dorpsstraat

We first go very far back in time, namely to the year 1701. In the night of 28 to 29 October, the Dorpstraat was startled by a huge fire. The fire could only be tamed at the first house in Zegwaart. To protect the nearby church against the flames, a shed had to be overturned.

The day after the fire, fifty men were appointed to watch in the city, so that the smoldering remains could not cause a fire again. How the fire originated is still unknown.

Korenmolen De Hoop

A Special newsbericht of January 16, 1897. A flour mill burned down to the ground. The flour mill, known to us as the De Hoop mill, was from Mr Hoogenboezem. The cause of the fire is not known. It is remarkable that the news item says: “The burning mill offered a beautiful spectacle in the nocturnal dark.” The incident apparently attracted a lot of viewers.

Fire in the dairy factory

Third a factory fire. In April 1937, one arose big fire In the Brinkers dairy. The fire was caused by a short circuit in the dry installation. A lot of smoke was involved and that is why the staff present had to flee. The fire brigade managed to extinguish the fire, but the employees needed fourteen days to be able to restart the factory.

Fire in a photo studio

A photo studio at Dorpsstraat 68 went in June 1945 in flames on. The photo studio was in a wooden shed and partly due to the chemicals present, this shed burned down completely. In the studio there was a lot of stored photo material, cameras that were returned for repair and a number of new bicycles. How did the fire arise? According to the report, that has not become clear.

Fire in theater 1953

Finally: The fire in the theater. On the evening of January 21, 1953, a fire started in the Zoetermeer cinema/theater of Fraassen. This theater was at Dorpsstraat 121 and was owned by Toon van Fraassen, who also had the café our pleasure.

Upon arrival, the fire brigade saw the flames beat out of the building. The firefighters tried to extinguish the fire without causing too much water damage, but this proved difficult. The fire was created on stage and had already spread to the room through the ceiling. In the end a lot of water had to be used to stop the fire. The damage to the building turned out to be great afterwards, especially in the changing rooms and the stage.

The cause of the fire is never outdated, but luckily there were no injuries in the fire.

More about the fire brigade

Want to know more about the Zoetermeer fire brigade? For example, about how it originated and how it worked in the previous centuries? Read it below.