200-year-old history goes up in flames in Brazil… a loss which is irreparable

It can't get more tragic than this. The 200-year-old National Museum in Brazil's capital Rio de Janeiro was gutted by a massive fire on Sunday, September 2. It was reported that precious items in the museum - numbering a whopping 20 million - were completely destroyed although there was no casualty. The cause of the devastating fire was yet unknown. Brazilian President Michel Temer said in a tweet that the loss caused by the fire was "incalculable".

"200 years of work, research and knowledge have been lost," he said in a tweet.