A huge blaze that erupted at Aberdeen Armory Museum in Seattle has destroyed an exhibition of Kurt Cobain work.

The building, which is nearly a century old, was filled with priceless artefacts including a series of early artwork by the late Nirvana frontman.

“The thermal column was going up to the clouds,” said Aberdeen Fire Chief Tom Hubbard. “The wind pulling in behind them feeding the fire,” he added.

“We made a valiant effort to go offensive and then we just had to pull back,” he said before explaining that thermal cameras showed the ceiling topped 2,000 degrees before it caved in. “The museum was just priceless. The curators did just such a nice job with it and it is just devastating. The heartbreak,” he said. “We can pick up some of the pieces,” Hubbard said. “I think this is when you’ll see Aberdeen truly shine and hear people say, let’s rebuild it.”

Former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselić shared the footage of the fire on Twitter, writing: “This is terrible. Hope people are safe.”

Here is some of the Cobain work lost: