Building left uninhabitable 14 people rescued from burning apartment building in Bonn
BONN · On Monday evening, firefighters were called to a fire in an apartment building in Bonn-Endenich. 14 persons were rescued from the fire, and the house was left uninhabitable.
On Christmas evening, the fire department rescued 14 people from a burning apartment building in Bonn-Endenich. A fire had broken out in the basement of a multi-family house on Kolpingstrasse at around 7:30 pm. Residents made an emergency call, reporting strong smoke and heat coming from the basement of the building.
As the fire department informed, "dramatic scenes took place". From the front door and from the windows of the staircase and the apartments on the upper floors, heavy black smoke was pouring in as emergency vehicles arrived. Numerous residents were at their windows or on their balconies crying for help. Because of the thick smoke, the escape route out of the building was cut off.
14 people rescued
One fire department squad entered the basement with breathing apparatus in order to fight the flames in the basement and secure the way into the building. Meanwhile, other firefighters rescued the people from their apartments. Nine adults, five children and five dogs were brought to safety via an aerial ladder, portable ladders or through the stairwell. Three other residents had evacuated before the fire department arrived.
Emergency services treated the 17 people, one woman was slightly injured and taken to a hospital in Bonn.
The cause of the fire was thought to be work on a motor scooter. Police spokesperson Frank Piontek said it was believed that the fire began in the basement following a flash fire or small detonation which probably triggered the fire. The investigation continues.
Building is uninhabitable
Firefighters had the blaze under control after a few minutes, but the house is uninhabitable until further notice. Damage to the electric system and the building itself are too serious to continue living there. According to the police, power cables were hanging down. The entire power supply in the apartment house had to be turned off.
Evacuated residents found shelter with family, relatives or friends. The City of Bonn and support services of the Malteser help organization had meanwhile organized emergency accommodation, but nobody needed to make use of that offer.
The deployment of the fire brigade, which had dispatched around 50 firefighters, ended at around 10:30 pm after about three hours.
(Orig. text: ga.de, Translation: ck)
