Around 11:20 a.m., passers-by noticed smoke pouring outside of a window of a residential and commercial building on the east side of Friedensplatz. Leon Brockhoff, an employee of a bakery on the ground floor of the building, told the General-Anzeiger what he witnessed: "In the stairwell I saw smoke pouring out from behind the doors and also noticed the heat. I called the fire department and received instructions to clear the building. Fortunately, there was no one else in the building," said Brockhoff.

The fire department gained access to the apartment via the entrance on Kasernenstrasse and the side of the building facing Friedensplatz and also used a rotating ladder. In the course of the fire-fighting and rescue operation, a person was found in the building, the firefighters later reported. Although an attempt was made to reanimate the man, it was unsuccessful and the victim died at the scene of the fire. When the rescue services arrived on the scene, they were briefly obstructed by delivery traffic.

The apartment had to be aired out and the entire building was searched for burning embers or injured people, but none were found. The neighboring stores and restaurants were able to continue their normal operations shortly afterwards. A total of 45 fire and rescue service personnel were called to the scene. The cause of the fire remained unclear on Friday, and the investigations are still ongoing.

There was also a minor incident on the periphery of the operation, when a passer-by apparently refused to accept the closure of Kasernenstrasse and was temporarily detained by the police. The Friedensplatz was temporarily closed to all buses and reopened at about 12:15 pm.

(Orig. text: Jonathan Kemper, Matthias Kehrein / Translation: ck)