The Parque Central Complex fire was a fire on 17 October 2004, that destroyed almost one-third of the East Tower of the Parque Central Urban Complex in Caracas, Venezuela. At least 20 floors were completely destroyed by the fire, although the building was able to withstand more than 15 hours of fire without collapsing due to its strong structure. [1] [2] [3]
Just before midnight, 17 October 2004, a fire broke out in the East Tower, which housed government offices and one of the highest buildings in South America at the time. The fire affected the 34th floor to the 50th floor. The tower sustained major damage because firefighting efforts were hampered by non-working automatic sprinkler and standpipe systems. It was feared that the concrete-and-steel structure could be damaged severely enough to collapse, and internal firefighting efforts were pulled in the interest of safety. Two steel decks partially collapsed, and deflection in some steel beams was later found to be severe. The fire burned itself out in the early morning of 19 October. [4] [1] [3]
Nine years later, in November 2013, there was a minor fire in the West Tower. The fire was on the 16th floor, in which 420 people were evacuated and 15 were rescued, with no fatalities. The fire was immediately controlled so that it did not affect the upper floors of the tower. Fire Department officials presumed that the fire occurred in a trash chute. [4]
As part of the recovery plan for the East Tower, an antenna was installed at the end of 2012. The antenna has a height of 30 meters, an element that increases the height of the tower to 255 meters. However, since the antenna is not part of the main structure of the tower, it is not taken into account to redefine its height, so the building would remain at its original height of 225 meters. After eight years of reconstruction, it was not until 2013 that the work was completely finished. [5]
Despite not being completed that year, it was possible to operate offices in the mezzanines belonging to the Public Prosecutor's Office, the SAIME civil registry, the Capital District government and the Ministry of Women, as well as on higher levels, although, beyond the 27th floor, the elevators are "out of service". The complex has a convention hall, restaurants and an observation deck located on the 53rd floor. As of 2015, the structure was operational, although its restoration continues. [6] and the presence of abandonment inside the towers remained. [7]
The Caracas Metro is a mass rapid transit system serving Caracas, Venezuela. It was constructed and is operated by Compañía Anónima Metro de Caracas, a government-owned company that was founded in 1977 by José González-Lander who headed the project for more than thirty years since the early planning stages in the 1960s. Its motto is "Somos parte de tu vida". In 1978 MTA – New York City Transit's R46 #816 was shipped from the Pullman Standard's plant as a sample of rolling stock to be used for the new metro system that was under construction at the time.
The Parque Central Complex is a housing, commercial and cultural development, implemented by Centro Simón Bolívar and located in El Conde in the center of the city of Caracas, Venezuela adjacent to Paseo Vargas.
The Parque de Bombas is a historic former fire station in Ponce, Puerto Rico. It is one of Puerto Rico's most notable buildings, with some considering it "by far the most easily recognized landmark in the Island."
Chacao is one of the five political and administrative subdivisions of the city of Caracas, Venezuela. The other four are Baruta, El Hatillo, Libertador and Sucre. This legal entity is known as the Caracas Metropolitan District. Chacao is also one of the 21 municipalities that make up the State of Miranda, Venezuela.
Línea Aérea Conviasa is a Venezuelan airline with its headquarters on the grounds of Simón Bolívar International Airport in Maiquetía, Venezuela, near Caracas. It is the flag carrier and largest airline of Venezuela, operating services to domestic destinations and destinations in the Caribbean and South America. Conviasa is known to make routes from a political perspective rather than a financial standpoint.
Centro Financiero Confinanzas, also known as Torre de David, is an unfinished abandoned skyscraper in Caracas, the capital of Venezuela. It is the third highest skyscraper in the country after the twin towers of Parque Central Complex. The construction of the tower began in 1990 but was halted in 1994 due to the Venezuelan banking crisis. As of 2024, the building remains incomplete. It was damaged due to two earthquakes on 21 and 22 August 2018.
El Parque del Este, renamed as officially Generalissimo Francisco de Miranda Park by Chávez since, in honor of the Venezuelan national hero, is a public recreation park located in the Sucre Municipality of Metropolitan Caracas in Venezuela. Opened in 1961, it is one of the most important of the city, with an area of 82 hectares. The park was designed by Roberto Burle Marx and associates Fernando Tabora and John Stoddart.
The Ministry of Aquatic and Air Transport is a ministry of the Government of Venezuela. Its head office is on the 12th floor of the Torre Pequiven in Chacao Municipality, Caracas.
The Centro Simón Bolívar Towers TCSB also known as the Towers of Silence is a building with a pair of 32-story towers, each measuring 103 meters in height, in El Silencio district, Caracas, Venezuela. Built during the time of the presidency of Marcos Pérez Jiménez, the TCSB was opened to the public on December 6, 1954.
The Parque Cristal is an office and recreation building located on Avenida Francisco de Miranda in Caracas, Venezuela, which has become a famous landmark. It was seen as a symbol of development when it was constructed in 1977.
The 2017 Venezuelan protests began in late January following the abandonment of Vatican-backed dialogue between the Bolivarian government and the opposition. The series of protests originally began in February 2014 when hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans protested due to high levels of criminal violence, inflation, and chronic scarcity of basic goods because of policies created by the Venezuelan government though the size of protests had decreased since 2014. Following the 2017 Venezuelan constitutional crisis, protests began to increase greatly throughout Venezuela.
2018 protests in Venezuela began in the first days of January as a result of high levels of hunger by desperate Venezuelans. Within the first two weeks of the year, hundreds of protests and looting incidents occurred throughout the country. By late-February, protests against the Venezuelan presidential elections occurred after several opposition leaders were banned from participating. Into March, the Maduro government began to crack down on military dissent, arresting dozens of high-ranking officials including former SEBIN director Miguel Rodríguez Torres.
The UCV Clock Tower, also known by its Spanish name Torre del Reloj de la UCV, or Reloj de la UCV, is a monument made of prestressed concrete. It is by the Rectory Plaza of the Central University of Venezuela in the University City of Caracas, and was built between 1953 and 1954.
On 9 November 2019, four teenagers were killed and over 50 people were injured in a crowd crush at a trap music concert in Caracas.
On 23 January 2020, a fire was started in the Agrícola del Lago reed bed in Cagua, Aragua state, Venezuela. Eleven people were confirmed to have died as a result of the fire, all but two being minors.
The 2022 Tierra del Fuego wildfire was a fire that affected the Chilean commune of Timaukel in the west of Tierra del Fuego Island in southernmost South America. The fire was discovered on January 20 but since no flames could be found it was reportedly believed that it was already extinguished. It began in land owned by the forestry company Forestal Russfin. Days later the fire was envigorated and consumed various hectares of forest.
On 22 February 2024, at approximately 17:30 CET, a fire broke out in a 14-storey luxury residential complex located in the Campanar district of Valencia, Spain. The rapid spread of the fire, exacerbated by strong winds, building materials and a stack effect, led to the complete destruction of the complex's 138 apartments, trapping numerous residents inside.
The Banco Comercial was a multi-purpose office building located in the historic centre of Lima, Peru. It housed the Banco Comercial del Perú (BANCOPER), after which it was named, and later the Banco de la Nación. The building was designed by Peruvian architect Enrique Seoane Ros, and built by Flores & Costa, S.A., a Peruvian construction firm.
El siniestro consumió unos 20 pisos de una de las torres más altas de Sudamérica en el centro de Caracas, pero no llegó a desplomarse, como temieron las autoridades
