Mayor Jan van Zanen, who arrived at the scene in the Schilderswijk neighbourhood, said that a fire breaking out in the middle of a residential area was "frightening."
"Many people who have left their homes feel insecure and are in shock. Firefighters are doing everything they can to get the fire under control as quickly as possible", he said.
The city administration said the cause of the fire was not known. The blaze spread to the Al-Fath Mosque. The chief cleric told the press that a thousand copies of the Quran were destroyed in the fire.