Staff and guests including US actor Henry Winkler were evacuated following a suspected fire at the historic Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin city centre this morning.
Guests said they were alerted by a fire alarm at around 10.30am.
A witness said he saw smoke coming from one of the upper bedroom windows.
All staff and guests were told to leave the building with the fire brigade arriving minutes later.
District Officer with Dublin Fire Brigade Colm Kershaw, the senior officer at the scene, said the fire appeared to have started in the roof space above a bedroom in the new wing on the sixth floor.
He said it had been contained and everyone was safe. The hotel and the road outside have now reopened.
An electrical fault is being investigated as a possible cause.
Firefighters used a crane to reach the higher floors and accessed the roof of the building close to where smoke was seen coming from a window.
DFB brought the blaze under control in less than an hour.
Fire officers say it was not necessary to break through the roof to obtain access to control
the fire and that there was minimal damage to the historic building.
Hundreds of staff and guests at the Shelbourne Hotel have since begun filing back into the building following the evacuation.
Henry Winkler, best known as The Fonz from US sitcom Happy Days, is in Dublin to promote his memoir Being Henry – The Fonz and Beyond was seen thanking members of Dublin Fire Brigade for their work.
He said he was woken by what he thought was an alarm clock this morning, when he realised it was the fire alarm going off.
He praised the officers who he said were the ones running into buildings while others run the other way.
Firefighters were called to a fire in a premises on St Stephen’s Green at 1038 this morning
The fire is under control with an effective evacuation helping enormously
Six fire engines including a turntable ladder and emergency tender remain on scene
Traffic restrictions in area pic.twitter.com/qaTLfT4M9u
— Dublin Fire Brigade (@DubFireBrigade) June 12, 2024
Additional reporting Samantha Libreri
