Because of a fire in the “Spain” area, around 25,000 visitors had to leave Europa-Park Rust on Monday afternoon. Despite the fire, the amusement park is scheduled to reopen on Tuesday.
A fire broke out in Europa-Park in Rust (Ortenaukreis) on Monday afternoon. The plume of black smoke was visible from miles away for several hours. According to the police, the fire probably broke out in a technical room.
SWR reporter Ina Held reports on Monday, 9:45 p.m., about the fire in Europa-Park:
The fire was fought and brought under control by about 400 firefighters. About 100 police officers and paramedics were also on duty. The fire brigade was still on site late in the evening to fight embers. The air in and around the park was filled with smoke at times. Residents in the municipality of Rust were therefore asked to keep windows and doors closed. That warning was lifted that night.
At around 9:50 p.m., the air in and around Europa-Park was still full of smoke, and the fire brigade was still on site to fight hot spots.
Police: Security measures worked
The fire broke out around 4:40 p.m., police said. According to SWR information, visitors were asked to leave the park. According to eyewitness reports, this happened quickly and in an orderly manner. According to current knowledge, there were no injuries among the visitors, but two firefighters suffered minor smoke inhalation while fighting the fire.
“The security mechanisms – such as fire alarms and alarm plans – have worked smoothly according to the current status,” the police said. Around two hours after the fire was first reported, around 25,000 visitors left the park, according to the police.
Park is scheduled to reopen on Tuesday
All hotel guests can go back to their rooms, the park said around 7 p.m. on Twitter. He also assured that the park will reopen tomorrow. However, some areas around the scene of the fire would most likely not be accessible. Late Monday evening it was announced which attractions will remain closed as a result of the fire:
Europa-Park: Fire in “Magic World of Diamonds”
The fire probably broke out in a technical room in the “Spain” area near the “Magic World of Diamonds” attraction. The building represents a world of diamonds underground and is accessible on foot, the attractions Alpenexpress “Enzian” and the “Tiroler Wildwasserbahn” lead through it.
What started the fire is not yet known. According to the police, the investigation is ongoing. However, it could be several days before the cause of the fire is determined. So far there is no evidence of arson. It is also still unclear how high the damage is and how badly individual attractions are affected by the fire.
At around 7:30 p.m., the clouds of smoke slowly cleared.
Lots of video footage on Twitter
Shortly after the outbreak, the first videos from Europa-Park were circulating on the social media platform Twitter. Clouds of dark, black smoke could be seen rising into the sky. A spokeswoman for the amusement park confirmed the fire a short time later.
Monday’s fire brought back memories of the major fire that broke out at Europa-Park in May 2018 and destroyed the popular Pirates in Batavia attraction and large parts of the Scandinavian and Dutch themed areas. According to the public prosecutor, the fire was triggered by a technical effect and caused millions of euros in damage. The areas destroyed at that time have all been rebuilt and reopened since 2020.