Late on Thursday, a fire broke out in 4,000-square meters of the Chinese shopping mall in New Belgrade municipality, destroying almost all of 340 shops, N1 reported on Friday.

One firefighter was slightly injured, while the owners and their families safely escaped the fire and spent the night in a nearby park. Some were entering the mall to save what was left of their goods, helping the firefighters put the blaze down.

Early on Friday, there was fear of explosions since there were gas bottles inside the mall, while the smoke rose high into the air.

The firefighters told N1 they would need at least a few more days to put everything under control since the fire was still smouldering inside the mall.