NEW DELHI: A massive fire on Tuesday morning destroyed the National Museum of Natural History located on the sixth floor of the Ficci auditorium in central Delhi.
According the officials, almost everything including the collection and documents on display in the museum, was destroyed.
"Important documents and property has been destroyed. We are yet to audit the damage," an official said.
Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar visited the site and ordered an energy and fire audit of all the establishments under his ministry throughout the country.
"The museum was on the Ficci property, we will assess the damage as soon as we are handed it over and see how we can restore it," Javadekar said here.
The blaze which broke out around 1.48 a.m., was controlled by 6 a.m. Parts of the Ficci auditorium were also destroyed.
"The fire had been completely doused. However, the operation is still on since smoke is still rising from the museum," a fire bridage officer said.
Five fire brigade officers were rushed to hospital as they were injured while trying to contain the blaze.
As many as 35 fire tenders were pressed into services.
The cause of the fire, according to the officials, was yet unclear.