Athens News - Security alert prompts Eiffel Tower evacuation

NYSE - LSE
CMSC -1.39% 20.12 $
RBGPF 0.82% 65 $
GSK -1.23% 49.095 $
CMSD -2.04% 19.865 $
RIO -0.75% 93.71 $
RELX -0.39% 32.94 $
BCE -1.47% 20.263 $
BTI -2.79% 54.53 $
RYCEF 2.03% 19.71 $
NGG -1.2% 74.35 $
AZN -1.21% 164.17 $
JRI -0.37% 10.73 $
VOD -1.94% 16.265 $
BCC -1.63% 75.365 $
BP -1.6% 43.73 $
Security alert prompts Eiffel Tower evacuation
Security alert prompts Eiffel Tower evacuation / Photo: Bertrand GUAY - AFP/File

Security alert prompts Eiffel Tower evacuation

A security alert Saturday prompted the evacuation of three floors of the Eiffel Tower in central Paris, France's most emblematic symbol which drew 6.2 million visitors last year.

Text size:

SETE, the body which runs the site, said bomb disposal experts as well as police were scouring the area, including a restaurant located on one of the floors.

"It's a usual procedure in this kind of situation which however is rare," a spokeswoman said.

Visitors were evacuated from both the three floors and the square under the monument shortly after 1:30 pm (1130 GMT).

Construction work on the tower began in January 1887 and was finished on March 31, 1889. It received two million visitors during the World's Fair of 1889.

I.Manolis--AN-GR