Fact check: Was Paris' Eiffel Tower on fire? Viral TikTok video debunked amid clip circulating online

Images and videos depicting the Eiffel Tower seemingly consumed by flames and smoke have been widely circulating on various social media platforms in the past few days. According to Full fact, these pictures and clips are now being shared on X and Facebook, with one user captioning it:

“The Eiffel Tower caught fire, one of the most emblematic monuments in the world, located in the heart of Paris. According to the latest information, firefighters have not yet been able to control the fire that occurred yesterday afternoon.”

Videos of the alleged fire also gained traction on X, with many users posting clips of the same:

However, no reports of a fire have surfaced on the official website of the Eiffel Tower, and tickets to climb it are still available for purchase. Photos shared on the official social media channels depict the tower covered in snow. It appears that the viral images suggesting a fire on the landmark are a hoax, created using AI-generated imagery. Hence, it can be said that these claims are entirely false, and the tower remains undamaged.

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The Eiffel Tower burning rumor originated from a fake TikTok video

As reported by The Sun, the viral video of the Eiffel Tower burning garnered widespread attention, propelled by the popularity of a TikTok video that has accumulated over 2.3 million views and 49.6k likes as of January 22, 2024.

Social media users who believed the fire to be real expressed concerns and fears about the iconic tourist attraction.

As reported by The Sun, given the Eiffel Tower's annual influx of over seven million visitors, it comes as no surprise that individuals swiftly turned to social media to respond to the rumors.

Under several of the posts on X and Facebook, a community note clarified that the source of the video was TikTok, which reportedly has a note at the end, saying:

"*Note that this article is purely fictional and was created to illustrate a hypothetical situation. There are currently no fires at the Eiffel Tower.*"

The official page of the monument also dismissed all the rumors by posting the latest picture of the Eiffel Tower engulfed in snow.

Official news sources, along with accounts from people in the vicinity, have come forward to dispel the misinformation, confirming the truth and debunking all the rumors surrounding the alleged fire at the tower.

Furthermore, notable public figures, including the Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, the Prime Minister, Gabriel Attal, and the President, Emmanuel Macron, have not issued any statements regarding the alleged incident, adding to the credibility of the information refuting the rumors.

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Other hoaxes involving Eiffel Tower

The 'Iron Lady,' as the monument is often called, regularly fields security-related calls, many of which turn out to be false alarms. In August 2023, an investigation was launched into a series of false bomb reports that led to the evacuation of the tower on two occasions.

On August 12, 2023, the Eiffel tower was evacuated for more than two hours following a bomb threat. Around 4,000 evacuated visitors were permitted to return by mid-afternoon after a thorough search of the tower. Later in the evening, a second evacuation occurred in response to another bomb threat. French media reported that both threats were posted online.

Bomb disposal experts were summoned in both instances, but sniffer dogs determined that no explosives were present in the tower. Those two incidents were hoaxes to create a stir and gain followers on social media.

As per The Sun, another misconception claims that the Tower lights were turned off to honor the victims of the 2021 attacks in France. However, this information was also entirely untrue.