MOULIN ROUGE'S ICONIC WINDMILL SAILS COLLAPSE OVERNIGHT

The wings of the windmill of the famous Moulin Rouge cabaret in Paris collapsed late on Wednesday night.

Authorities said no injuries were reported, and that there was no longer any risk of collapse. Management said the incident was due to a technical problem, and no there was no evidence of vandalism. 

The fall of the windmill's wings caused damage to the front of the building, lopping off the letters M, O and U from the illuminated sign.

On Thursday morning, barriers were put up around the entrance of the establishment. The cleanup operation ended at around 8:35am local time. 

The only serious accident in the Moulin Rouge's history was a fire that occurred during building works in 1915, which led to the venue's closure for nine years. 

The cabaret, located in Paris' Montmartre district, is symbolic of Parisian nightlife, and is famous for its trademark dance, the French cancan.

The establishment, which employs some 450 people, will be celebrating its 135th anniversary on 6 October this year.

2024-04-25T14:09:00Z dg43tfdfdgfd