Two 13-year-old boys have surrendered to police following the destruction of a seven-story heritage building in central Sydney by fire.
Tuesday afternoon, the building caught fire, necessitating the efforts of approximately one hundred firefighters to extinguish the blaze.
The police believe that additional adolescents were implicated in the incident and have urged them to come forward.
At the time of the fire, fifteen individuals were sleeping rough in the building, and thirteen of them have been accounted for.
However, at least 70 residents have been evacuated from the adjacent buildings, and a seven-day exclusion zone is anticipated.
Police verified that the teens who turned themselves in were aiding their investigations.
Tuesday, according to Fire and Rescue New South Wales, the fire reached the “10th” alarm status, the most severe level.
The building was formerly the Henderson Hat factory and was designated as historic. There were intentions to redevelop it into a hotel after many years of vacancy.
Sydney was surrounded by a dense column of smoke after it caught fire. The top level of the building was captured on video collapsing onto the adjacent street.
Fire and Rescue NSW reported that they were able to contain the blaze to prevent damage to adjacent apartment buildings.
The organization also reported that the NSW Police Arson Squad had taken over the investigation into the cause of the fire.
The building is located across the street from Sydney’s central station in the inner city.
Tuesday transport to and from the central area was halted as firefighters worked to extinguish the fire.
