Carl Gustav Hellman's house on the hill slightly before 9 p.m. The house may have been lit on fire by sparks flying from the chimney of a neighboring building. The fire quickly swept through the city's northern quarter, spread to the southern quarter and jumped the Aura River, setting the Cathedral Quarter on fire before midnight. By the next day, the fire had destroyed 75% of the city. Only 25% of the city was spared, mainly the western and southern portions.

The fire destroyed the downtown