A fire broke out at a popular holiday market at Bryant Park, in Midtown Manhattan, on the morning of Friday, December 27, 2024.

The Bryant Park holiday market is one of New York’s largest seasonal attractions, with around 4 million visitors. These shoppers can go to dozens of small stores spread out around the park, along with enjoying ice skating, curling, and a large variety of food stands.

The Fire Department claimed that they received a call about a fire that broke out at the south side of the park a little before 9:30 am. The fire was brought under control by the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) at 10 am. Officials reported that there were no injuries and the fire authority is searching for the cause of the incident.

People at the market captured photos and videos of the fire and posted them to social media. In one of the videos, a man shouts, “Get out!” and “Let’s go!” as the fire burns through what turns out to be multiple stores. In another video, five firefighters advance toward the flames.

Another market, the Herald Square holiday market, was also a victim of a fire a week earlier. It is about six blocks south of Bryant Park. Numerous stalls were burnt and one firefighter was seriously injured.

Michael Strauss, age 65, stated that he was at his office in the vicinity when his co-worker sent him a recording of the fire. When he stepped outside, the fire was already extinguished, though it left many badly burnt stores. He estimated that there were about 30 firefighters at the incident.

Strauss was relieved that the fire had caused little damage. He said that tourists come from all over the world to enjoy the park’s entertainments, and it had come from being a “not-so-safe” place in the 1980s to a “fabulous” place to visit per the New York Times.

Last Friday morning, a corner of the park was closed off, but looking at the rest of the park, no one can tell that a fire happened at all.