A building complex in the city center caught fire in a major fire in Hof on Monday evening. According to initial estimates, the damage was in the millions, according to the police. “The rescue service took care of five slightly injured people, some of whom had to be treated in a hospital with smoke poisoning,” it said. According to the police, the fire brigade was able to extinguish the fire in the evening.
According to initial findings, the fire broke out in the backyard of a terraced house, the police said. The block of flats was mostly burned out – the roof truss had collapsed. “The fire later spread to the adjacent house numbers,” it said in a statement. The fire brigade tried to prevent further spread. According to Bayerischer Rundfunk, however, the extinguishing work was difficult because the houses in the city center are very close together at this point.
Puffs of smoke over the inner city of Hof: According to initial estimates, the major fire in Hof caused damage in the millions.
(Photo: Ferdinand Merzbach/dpa)
Several fire brigades were on site with numerous emergency services to extinguish the fire. Three rescue helicopters were also deployed as a precaution, and another police helicopter supported the extinguishing work with live images from the air. According to the police, more than 250 forces were deployed at peak times.
Accommodation options were organized at short notice for the affected residents of the apartment buildings. In addition, the Jahnhalle was prepared as an emergency shelter. A police spokeswoman spoke of around 40 to 50 people who had gathered at a contact point. The cause of the fire was initially unclear.