In Germany – probably also because of the restrictions – the celebrations were largely calm and peaceful. In Leipzig, however, there were clashes, in Hennef a man died in an explosion.
Property damage occurred during protests in Leipzig on New Year’s Eve. In the east of the city there were massive attacks on the police, reports the Leipziger Volkszeitung. Burning shopping carts and fireworks can be seen in photos and videos. On Friday evening there was a peaceful event by Corona opponents on Augustusplatz. It should also have been quiet in the Connewitz district, but residents reported that there were many emergency services and that the streets were closed.
Shortly after midnight, the operations management received more reports, 80 incidents in the first hour alone. The police were represented in large numbers. It is still unclear who started the attacks and what motivation is behind them. Apparently, however, it was groups from left circles who had gathered despite the ban on dissolution. The situation was very confusing, also in terms of the number of injuries. Apparently police and firefighters were attacked.
Hennef: In the explosion of a firework in Hennef near Bonn, one man was killed and another was seriously injured. The two men, 37 and 39 years old, had celebrated New Year’s Eve with a group of ten. Shortly after midnight, according to witnesses, they had separated a little from the group. Suddenly there was a very loud bang and the two were seriously injured on the ground. The 37-year-old died despite attempts at resuscitation at the scene of the accident in the Hennef district of Hüchel; the 39-year-old was taken to a clinic with life-threatening injuries. A police spokesman suspected early Saturday morning that the fireworks could have been a self-made firecrackers. The criminal police started the investigation. “Bild” had previously reported on the accident.
Stuttgart: On New Year’s Eve, around midnight in downtown Stuttgart, clashes broke out between party-goers and the police. Shortly before the turn of the year, more and more people flocked to the central palace square, so this was temporarily cordoned off, as the police announced in a preliminary balance sheet. At the barriers, the people, especially young and aggressive men, had pushed in the direction of the officials, some had thrown firecrackers at police officers. The police said they used batons and pepper spray against the crowd. One police officer suffered a bang and two other officers were slightly injured in physical attacks. It was not initially announced whether there were also injuries among the partygoers. After one o’clock it had become much quieter in the city center.
Several hundred police and city officials were on duty from afternoon to night to enforce the corona protective measures and to prevent “alcohol-related group violence in the city center,” as the police report said. Around 5 p.m., around 150 people had already gathered on Schlossplatz. When the police made them aware of the ban on gathering there, they withdrew in smaller groups. In the course of the evening, those addressed mostly followed the instructions of the police. Around midnight, however, the situation worsened.
In the rest of the country’s southwest, however, according to the police, the turn of the year was largely calm and decent. There were initially no major missions, said a spokesman on Saturday morning.
Berlin: Several ambulances were called to Friedrichshagen on New Year’s Eve. A total of twelve people were injured there by a pyrotechnic explosion, reported the fire department, including several minors. They were immediately taken to clinics. The exact cause of the explosion has not yet been determined.
Bochum: While in the years before the pandemic the emergency call lines were no longer idle from midnight, the rescue control center recorded only twelve missions in the first hour of the new year. There were significantly fewer injuries from fireworks than on the usual New Year’s Eve. The first mission of the new year was reported to the control center at 12:17 a.m.: a serious facial injury from a fireworks rocket.
Bremerhaven: The police officers positioned in the city had to identify and punish some administrative offenses, but the situation was largely calm. However, firecrackers were occasionally fired in the urban area.
Düsseldorf: According to information from “Bild”, firecrackers are said to have been thrown into a crowd during the night. Before that, many celebrants had gathered in the old town. The police were represented by many forces, especially on Burgplatz.
Frankfurt am Main: In the Hessian metropolis, parts of the banks of the Main were cordoned off for celebrations. The old bridge had to be closed by the police because too many people had gathered. On Twitter, the police wrote under the hashtag # guude2022: “The numerous colleagues in the urban area report: Most of them celebrate peacefully in a small group. Keep it up, #Frankfurt!”
Munich: In the Bavarian capital, too, the police and fire brigade had a quieter night than in other years. The central rescue control center went back to normal operation at 1:06 a.m.
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