Fire forces New Zealand team to evacuate World Cup hotel in Auckland
The New Zealand women's national team is "safe" after a fire forced them to evacuate their hotel at the 2023 World Cup in Auckland on Saturday evening.
The tournament cohost fled down a stairway filled with smoke at the Pullman Hotel, the team's base for the World Cup tournament, according to the New Zealand Herald. The entire team and staff were accounted for. Four people were treated for smoke inhalation, but it's not clear if those treated include any players.
"New Zealand Football can confirm that the Football Ferns team and staff have been temporarily evacuated from the Pullman Hotel, their team base for the FIFA Women's World Cup, due to a fire," the New Zealand Football Federation said in a statement to the Herald.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
NEW ZEALAND: World Cup host stuns Norway 1-0 to open tournament
The evacuation comes on the heels of New Zealand's 1-0 upset victory over Norway on Thursday night in front of a record crowd to mark its first-ever World Cup win. The emotional win came hours after two people were killed and five were injured during a shooting near FIFA's Fan Festival earlier in the day.
New Zealand is one of eight teams based in Auckland for the group stage of the tournament, including USA, Vietnam, Argentina, Norway, Philippines, Portugal and Italy.
The Football Ferns play the Philippines next on Tuesday local time.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: World Cup 2023: New Zealand women evacuate hotel after fire
