At least hundreds of partygoers were forced to flee a dance club in southwestern Germany after a fire broke out in the early hours of Sunday (local time).
Over 750 people were present at the club, and none of them were reported injured in the incident in Kehl, a town near the French border, AP
reported, citing emergency services. However, three were undergoing treatment at the incident site for shock.
In local media posts, the club was identified as the K Club Kehl, a popular venue for hip-hop music.
Police said the fire began around 3:45 am (local time). According to a police statement, the blaze went on to “spread over the whole building.”
AP reported that all of the roughly 750 people inside the club were successfully able to escape in time. Images published in German media showed a huge fire on the roof of the nightclub, which is located in an industrial area of the city.
Rescue operation underway
The cause of the fire is being investigated. According to German news agency dpa, at least 80 personnel from the fire department, police, and emergency medical services responded to the incident.
On Sunday afternoon, firefighters were present at the scene, with remnants of the fire being put out in the interior of the club. Authorities noted that the damage was so extensive that most of the building had to be torn down.
Kehl’s mayor responds to the incident
In a statement, Kehl’s mayor Wolfram Britz said that he was happy and relieved to know that nobody was hurt, and he also thanked the nightclub owner for ensuring an orderly evacuation.
Swiss ski resort fire
The fire incident came months after a bar in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana caught fire in the early hours of New Year’s Day, killing 41 people. The fire was traced by investigators to sparklers attached to Champagne bottles. Over 100 people were injured in the fire, which occurred in the basement floor of a bar and killed dozens, many of them teenagers, from Switzerland, Portugal, Italy, and France. The investigation, which initially focused on the bar’s operators, has since been widened to include the current and the former heads of public safety in the municipality.
Kehl fire incident
Kehl is located just across the Rhine River from the French city of Strasbourg, and the nightclub frequently draws visitors from across the border.
In contrast to the earlier blaze in Crans-Montana, the evacuation in Kehl appears to have been carried out efficiently.
“One moment everything was normal, and then we heard there was a fire,” a partygoer told the French newspaper DNA, adding that announcements were made in German, French, and English.
According to the report, several clubbers said staff managed the situation effectively and that people were evacuated quickly.
Authorities have since launched an investigation into the incident, though the exact cause of the fire has yet to be determined.
(With AP inputs)
