- ‘False alarm’ for fire evacuation at PAX
- Attendees have returned into MCEC
Hundreds of attendees at the popular PAX Australia gaming festival were evacuated from the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC) on Saturday afternoon after the fire alarm was triggered.
The alarm went off around 3:40, prompting a swift response from Fire and Rescue Victoria.
A spokesperson for the MCEC confirmed to the Daily Mail that it was a ‘false alarm.’
There were no fires and no injuries reported.
People are now returning back into MCEC.
In a statement to Daily Mail PAX confirmed it was a ‘false alarm’.
‘On Saturday 11 October at approximately 3:40pm a fire alarm was activated at the Melbourne Exhibition Centre during PAX Aus 2025. Melbourne Fire Brigade attended and identified that it was a false alarm.’
‘The venue, MCEC, has assured us there is no need for further concern.’ the spokesperson said.
An MCEC spokesperson said the incident was a ‘false alarm’ with hundreds forced to evacuate
Hundreds of attendees of a popular gaming convention have been urgently evacuated from the Melbourne Convention Centre (pictured, crowds leaving the centre)
The situation saw a number of reactions social media.
‘That was an eventful 15 minutes of evacuating PAXAus’ one person wrote on X.
‘PAX got evacuated due to a fire but turns out it was a false alarm.’ said someone else.
False rumours circulating online suggested that someone had been arrested, but Victorian Police told the Daily Mail they had received no reports of any arrests.
Other users on X noted that the evacuation was calm, praising the convention attendees for moving out safely.
‘That evacuation felt very smooth. And we’re already allowed back in.’ someone said.
