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IMMIGRATION

Fire in Germany refugee shelter injures 37

A fire broke out in a refugee shelter in Germany overnight injuring 37 people, mainly due to smoke inhalation, police said on Sunday as they searched for the cause.

Published: 11 June 2017 12:45 CEST
Fire in Germany refugee shelter injures 37
Germany's migrant influx has sparked both a large wave of volunteerism and an ugly anti-foreigner backlash. Photo: DPA

Emergency services took 10 children and four adults to hospital after the blaze started around 2:30 am (0030 GMT) in the basement of the five-storey building in the northwestern city of Bremen.

The fire brigade responded with 70 personnel and 27 vehicles, using ladders to rescue some inhabitants from the smoke-filled building through windows.

Police said some 50 people had to be resettled in another shelter.

The fire was thought to have started in a garbage bin in the cellar, for as yet unknown reasons, they said in a statement. Officers were interviewing witnesses.

Germany, the EU's most populous country, has taken in over one million asylum seekers since 2015, about half of them from war-torn Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.

The influx has sparked both a large wave of volunteerism and an ugly anti-foreigner backlash that has seen a spate of hate crimes targeting migrants and refugees.

FIRE

Situation ‘unstable’ at Copenhagen’s old stock exchange after fire

Three days after a fire which ravaged Copenhagen's historic former stock exchange broke out, emergency services said Friday that the situation was "unstable" due to equipment issues and a strong breeze.

Published: 19 April 2024 17:44 CEST
Situation 'unstable' at Copenhagen's old stock exchange after fire

In the morning, during work to dismantle the scaffolding surrounding the building, a crane’s cutters came loose for as of yet unknown reasons.

It is currently wedged between the scaffolding — put up for the renovation of the historic building that was ongoing — and what remains of the walls.

“It is affecting our efforts”, Tim Ole Simonsen, leader of the operation at the rescue services, told a press conference.

Coupled with the wind picking up, the incident, which has temporarily halted work on dismantling the scaffolding, has made the situation “unstable”.

“The wind is blowing harder and harder, and there are tarps over the scaffolding that can catch the wind,” Simonsen said.

He added that this increases the risks, in particular of further collapse of the burnt-out facade which started collapsing late Thursday afternoon.

Located close to the Christiansborg parliament and seat of government, the Borsen building was commissioned by King Christian IV and built between 1619 and 1640. It was the stock exchange until the 1970s.

The fire began Tuesday morning under the copper roof of the building, which was undergoing renovations ahead of its 400th anniversary.

The cause of the blaze was unknown and Copenhagen police said Wednesday that a major investigation had been launched.

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