Moment iconic spire of Copenhagen's stock exchange building collapses onto the street below as fire ravages historic building

This is the devastating moment the historic spire of Copenhagen's stock exchange building collapses onto the street below.

Denmark's historic stock exchange erupted into flames after a fire broke out during renovations in Copenhagen today.

Local media reported a 'large bang' early this morning before the 400-year-old spire collapsed, with smoke billowing high above the city as locals reported debris from the 183ft tower crumbling into the street below.

A bleak video captured by an onlooker shows the moment the iconic spire is swallowed by raging flames before it crashes onto the street below.  

In the 45-second footage, shared on @CatchUpFeed on X earlier today, crowds of stunned onlookers gathered in disbelief to look on as the building appeared to collapse in on itself.

Flames from the blaze rapidly climb the spire, which stood at 56 metres (184 feet) in height, engulfing the pinnacle of the 17th century building in a matter of seconds.

The spire then appears to slowly bend under the intense heat of the flames, before succumbing to the ravages of the blaze and crashing to the ground below in a cascade of debris and smoke.

Early reports claimed parts of the spire had broken off and fallen onto the street by 7.30am BST (8.30am local time).

A large police and firefighting presence remains on the scene around the Børsen building, where scaffolding is seen to have collapsed in the inferno.

Surrounding streets in the Danish capital have been closed off and commuters urged to avoid the inner city as authorities desperately try to tackle the fire.

After ambulances attended the scene, there have since been no reports of injuries.

The Børsen, once the financial heart of Denmark, is situated next to Christiansborg Palace - the seat of the Danish Parliament - and dates back as far as 1625.

The building is identifiable for its twisting 183ft 'Dragespir' (Dragon Spire) and three crowns on top, representing the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden. 

Jakob Engel-Schmidt, Danish Culture Minister, said that 400 years of cultural heritage had gone up in flames as artifacts were hurried out of the fire.

Further videos from the scene showed firefighters battling to rescue historic paintings from the building, which is reportedly currently being 'blocked' to prevent the 'extensive' fire from spreading. 

'The fire makes it too dangerous to tackle it from inside the building,' said Jakob Vedsted Andersen, heading the emergency operation, 'Our plan is to block the fire so that it does not spread to the other half (of the building).

The building had been undergoing renovations to restore its original façade and correct errors made during an attempt in the 19th century. 

It comes after ten people were killed in a tower block inferno in Spain - which had been dubbed 'Spain's Grenfell' - despite the heroic efforts of firefighters who braved the raging fire in February.