A historic studio in "Hollywood on the Nile" is destroyed by fire

A fire destroyed the historic Al-Ahram Studio in Cairo, causing significant damage and spreading to nearby buildings, just hours after a Ramadan television series wrapped.

According to the Egyptian state news website Al-Ahram, a large fire destroyed the 80-year-old historic Al-Ahram Studio in Cairo on Saturday morning, causing considerable damage and spreading to nearby buildings. Al-Ahram also stated that the fire broke out just hours after filming for a Ramadan television series was wrapped up. It took firefighters more than five hours to put out and forced the evacuation of surrounding residential buildings. Videos of the studio location and the surrounding buildings completely destroyed by the fire were making the rounds on Egyptian media websites. The state media said that multiple injured people were sent to hospitals for treatment and that no fatalities had been reported.

Known as "Hollywood on the Nile," Egypt has long dominated the Arab cinema industry, giving birth to international icons like the late actor Omar Sharif and the late, highly regarded filmmaker Youssef Chahine. Al-Ahram Studio, which was established in 1944 and occupies 27,000 square meters, is home to three production stages, a screening room, and an editing suite. It has been a mainstay of the country's film and television industries. The studio was a major cultural treasure because it had contributed to the production of numerous Egyptian films and television shows. According to official media reports, Egypt's Public Prosecutor has opened an investigation to determine what caused the fire at one of the oldest film production companies in the Arab world.