# Rotterdam residents told to rinse off ash after large fire

> Police are investigating possible arson after a large fire at a business premises on Sydneystraat in Rotterdam. The safety region has advised residents on dealing with ash and soot carried into the city.

Society · published 2026-10-24 23:01 · https://nlnow.nl/a/police-investigate-possible-arson-after-large-rotterdam-business-fire/

Police are investigating possible arson at a business premises on Sydneystraat in Rotterdam after a large fire, saying arson is one of the possible scenarios. Police say the fire was reported just before 01:00 in the night to Saturday, and the fire service quickly scaled up to a major response. Nobody was injured. An NL-Alert was sent during the night because of the smoke.

The safety region (veiligheidsregio) said the strong wind could carry ash and soot particles into the city. It advised residents to rinse them off with water and then wash their hands. It also advised them to clean children's play areas, rinse vegetables from vegetable gardens well and throw away rough-surfaced leafy vegetables such as kale.

Around 16:00 on Saturday the safety region said the fire was under control. Police are asking witnesses to come forward.

## Background

- **Veiligheidsregio**: The safety region is a regional partnership of municipalities and emergency services in the Netherlands, including the fire brigade, the police and medical emergency care. It coordinates disaster and crisis management across its area, and it issues public safety advice to residents during incidents such as large fires. Its work is set out in the Wet veiligheidsregio's (Safety Regions Act).

From NLnow, news from the Netherlands in English. How stories are made: https://nlnow.nl/about/