Small blaze in basement of New York’s Empire State Building

NEW YORK (Reuters) – New York City firefighters were responding to a small blaze that broke out in the basement of the Empire State Building on Friday, fire officials said.

No injuries were reported in the fire, which started at about 2:20 p.m. ET (1820 GMT) and prompted the basement of the iconic 102-story skyscraper to be evacuated, a New York fire department spokesman said.

The rest of the Art Deco-style landmark, which draws more than 3.5 million visitors from around the world to its observation decks each year, was not evacuated, the spokesman said.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Opened in 1931, the tower is known for its Art Deco tower and is listed as a National Historic Landmark.

(Reporting by Laila Kearney; Editing by Alistair Bell)