A terrible fire burst out and spread in the building of the Youth Theatre opposite the National Assembly on December 7, nearly destroying it. The signal about the fire came at 5.40 p.m. Some 15 people were immediately evacuated. Two of the firemen were hospitalized -one of them was slightly gassed and the second one broke a collar-bone. At 6.55 p.m. Boyko Borisov, Chief Secretary of the Interior Ministry, arrived on the site of the fire. Ten minutes later he announced that the fire had been put out. An investigation into the causes of the accident has started. On December 8 the actors of the theatre announced they will continue to rehearse and perform in the same building. President-elect Georgi Parvanov said he will give his first salary as President for the reconstruction of the building.