Jiji PressNAHA (Jiji Press) — A fire broke out at the Shurijo castle, a UNESCO World Heritage site in Naha, the capital of the southernmost Japan prefecture of Okinawa, in the small hours of Thursday, burning down its Seiden and Hokuden halls, according to the city’s fire authorities and the police headquarters of the prefecture.
There was a phone call around 2:40 a.m. reporting smoke emitting from around the Seiden main hall of the castle in the city’s Shurikinjocho district.
After destroying Seiden and Hokuden, the fire is still burning. With about 20 fire trucks mobilized, firefighters are trying to extinguish the fire. There has been no report of injury.
The Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu, including the Shurijo site, were registered as a World Heritage site in 2000. Shurijo is known for its unique architectural style fusing Japanese and Chinese castle construction techniques
Jiji Press The Shurijo castle
According to the website of the Shurijo Castle Park, the castle served as the center of politics, diplomacy and culture of the kingdom, which existed for 450 years from 1429.
The castle was lost in a fire during the Battle of Okinawa, a fierce ground battle in the final phase of World War II. It was reconstructed as a state-managed park in 1992, 20 years after the reversion of Okinawa to Japan from U.S. control