Fire scare at Davos as Congress Centre evacuated: Is Trump affected? What we know so far

Congress Centre Evacuated, White House Official Says Trump Not Affected

• Congress Centre in Davos evacuated due to fire and strong smell at WEF meeting
• Fire quickly contained; evacuation was precautionary, no injuries reported
• Incident did not affect US President Trump, who had left the venue earlier

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A Congress Centre in Davos was evacuated after reports of a fire and a strong smell that left some people coughing, prompting an emergency response as world leaders and business executives gathered for the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Local fire services said the situation was quickly brought under control and that the evacuation was carried out as a precaution.

“The alarm has been fully contained, and the fire has been completely extinguished after evacuating part of the convention centre as a precaution," the fire service said in a statement.

Emergency crews, including specialised smoke-response teams, were dispatched to the venue. The fire is believed to have broken out in a wooden hut near the hotel complex housing the conference centre, though the exact cause of the incident has not yet been disclosed.

Italian journalist Lilli Gruber, who was inside the venue at the time, described tense scenes as people were asked to leave immediately.

“We are outside the Congress Centre, we have all been evacuated. We left all our things inside because there seems to be a fire in a hotel nearby. There are helicopters flying overhead, it' s full of firefighters," she told local media.

Smoke divers were also seen operating near the main WEF venue, while emergency workers were deployed outside a nearby hotel where civilians appeared to be undergoing an evacuation. Helicopters were observed flying overhead as firefighters secured the area.

A live broadcast on Italian channel La7TV was briefly disrupted amid the evacuation. One of the network’s reporters said, “There are helicopters flying overhead, it’s full of firefighters, and there’s an evacuation emergency underway.” The outlet reported that a fire had broken out at a nearby hotel.

Fox News reporter Edward Lawrence later confirmed that the evacuation had ended, posting video of emergency crews at the scene.

"Fire crews in Davos checked it out and ended the evacuation. We are back for my live [report]," Lawrence wrote on X, adding that crews were investigating the source of a smell that caused people in the area to begin coughing.

A White House official said the incident did not affect US President Donald Trump, who is attending the WEF. Another official confirmed that Trump had left the Congress Centre earlier in the evening and was not impacted by the evacuation.

The incident came just hours after Trump delivered a closely watched speech at the forum and met NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, during which he announced progress on a long-term framework deal related to Greenland.

“It’s a deal that everybody’s very happy with," Trump told reporters. “It’s a long-term deal. It’s the ultimate long-term deal. It puts everybody in a really good position, especially as it pertains to security and to minerals.”

He added, "It’s a deal that’s forever."

The WEF annual meeting in Davos has drawn dozens of heads of state, senior ministers, and top executives from around the world this week.