Japanese temple that holds “eternal flame” burns to the ground

Not The Bee ^ | June 01, 2026 | Mister Retrops

[Red Badger]

Reikado Hall on Miyajima Island's Mount Misen has been known as the home of the "eternal flame" for over 1,200 years.

And the thing about eternal flames is that if they do get out of control, you can't really put them out. Otherwise they're not so eternal are they?

And then the inevitable happens:

A Buddhist hall in Western Japan known for housing an "eternal flame" that has been burning for over 1,000 years caught fire and burned to the ground on Miyajima Island. pic.twitter.com/8HPHGdDu4A— The Associated Press (@AP) May 21, 2026

Yep, according to News on Japan, the eternal flame burned Reikado Hall to the ground:

Firefighters, including a firefighting helicopter, were dispatched to the scene, and the blaze was mostly extinguished after about two hours. However, Reikado Hall was completely destroyed, and the fire also spread to surrounding forest areas.

No injuries have been reported so far.

But don't worry, someone grabbed a flaming stick from the temple and used it to set fire to something else, so technically the fire hasn't gone out.

And they plan to rebuild the temple.

In fact, this isn't even the first time the eternal flame has destroyed Reikado Hall.

Reikado Hall has suffered repeated fire damage throughout its history. More recently, the structure was completely destroyed in a fire in 2005 before being rebuilt the following year.

Maybe this time around, they might think about fireproofing that place a little.

[If You Want It Fixed - Fix It]

The levvel of MORON that could write this sentence is....transformative. I guess killing one or two of such stupid but somehow employable writers might be critically necessary.

“And the thing about eternal flames is that if they do get out of control, you can’t really put them out. Otherwise they’re not so eternal are they?”

[BiteYourSelf]

You hadn’t lered stop,drop,and roll by then?😳

[BiteYourSelf]

I’d thought Johnny Car’s “Ring of fire “ would be more appropriate.😗

[BiteYourSelf]

Dang autocorrect, it’s supposed to be Johnny Cash.😖

[Dr. Franklin]

I’d thought Johnny Car’s “Ring of fire “ would be more appropriate.😗.

But that's not eternal.