Fire at pulmonary clinic One killed and several injured in fire in Cologne hospital
COLOGNE · One person has died and several are injured after a fire at a Cologne-Merheim clinic which specializes in lung disease. The fire broke out during the night in a patient's room, the cause is still unknown.
One person was killed early Monday morning in a fire at a Cologne lung hospital. According to a clinic spokeswoman, several people were slightly injured in the fire at the hospital in Cologne-Merheim. "We still cannot say anything about the cause of the fire. Due to the confusing situation, the police had initially assumed that eleven people were injured, but according to the clinic spokeswoman, only four people were slightly injured after initial examinations. In the meantime, a missing patient had been found immediately after the fire.
The clinic spokeswoman reported on Monday morning that the fire broke out in a patient’s room and led to strong smoke development in a corridor housing adjacent patient rooms. The fire department had been alerted at 4:05 a.m. by a fire alarm system and the staff. The person who was killed was found in "a completely burnt-out room", according to a statement from Monday morning. The identity of the victim remained unclear, but the police assumed that it was a patient. The fire was extinguished at around 5:30 a.m.
"All the injured were treated in the emergency room," said the clinic spokeswoman. Among them were hospital staff as well as patients. Police are investigating the cause of the fire. Initially, there was no information on the amount of damage.
(Orig. text: dpa; Translation: ck)
