A fire broke out at Disney’s Epcot theme park in Orlando, Florida on Saturday afternoon sending crowds fleeing in panic.
Thick black smoke could be seen billowing into the sky at the park’s French Pavilion.
Authorities say the incident happened when a walk-in cooler in the backstage area suddenly caught fire and led to the evacuation of the ‘Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure’ ride.
Video shot from one of the park’s cable cars showed dozens of people being forced to leave one of the most popular rides.
The fire took place during Spring Break, one of the busiest few weeks of the year.
Disney say the fire was extinguished by around 7:20pm but by then social media was full of videos showing smoke rising into the sky
A fire broke out at Disney’s Epcot theme park on Saturday afternoon sending crowds fleeing in panic
Thick black smoke could be seen billowing into the sky backstage at the park’s French Pavilion
The fire led to the evacuation of the ‘Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure’ ride
Authorities said no one was injured in the fire but many guests were clearly rattled by what they had witnessed.
‘It’s out now, but it was a scary moment for a minute!’ wrote one visitor on X.
No additional information has been provided at this time, including how or when the fire started.
Later in the evening guests reported that things seemed under control and that the fire had been extinguished.
The France section of the park was also reopened.
Thick smoke could be seen across the World Showcase lagoon from as far away as the UK and Canada (exhibits!)
Clouds of smoke could be seen drifting across the World Showcase Lagoon at the very heart of the park
The smoke could be seen billowing into the sky from some distance away
Passengers traveling on a cable car were able to capture the shocking sight from up above
Disney say the fire was extinguished shortly afterwards but social media has several videos showing smoke rising into the sky
Thick smoke could be seen blotting out the landscape during the fire on Saturday afternoon
The fire occurred during the World Showcase section of the Epcot theme park
