emergencies
Search for missing persons: building in Bochum collapsed in an explosion
The fire brigade and rescue workers are standing in front of the collapsed house in the Linden district of Bochum. photo
© Markus Gayk/TNN/dpa
An explosion, then the apartment building in the Linden district of Bochum collapses. Rescuers suspect at least one person under the unstable debris. Search dogs are on duty.
An apartment building collapsed in an explosion in Bochum. The situation is dramatic, said head of operations Simon Heussen in a video that the city’s fire department published on Twitter early in the morning. At least one person is suspected to be under the rubble of the building. Search dogs would have struck in several places, which would now be controlled.
Rescue workers had previously taken a slightly injured person who was in front of the house to a hospital. Photos showed the extent of the destruction: where the two-and-a-half-storey building stood, only a pile of rubble could be seen after the accident yesterday evening. The road was littered with stones.
It was therefore difficult to use. In the early morning, the rescuers had not yet been able to enter the scene of the accident because of the risk of further collapse. The debris was very unstable, it said.
The cause of the explosion was initially unclear. According to the Stadtwerke, the building had no gas connection, Heußen said. Nevertheless, gas was measured in the canal and in adjacent buildings. It is assumed that there was a gas leak. Therefore, the municipal utilities are also on site with excavators to close the valves of the gas lines in the streets.
The fire brigade, rescue service and technical relief organization (THW) were at the scene of the accident in the Linden district with 140 emergency services. In addition, two rescue dog squadrons with 20 helpers searched for missing people. According to Heussen, the operation could last all night.
Fire department tweet