A man and a woman were crushed when the roof collapsed, along with one of two floors, of a hotel in Krewe, Rhineland-Palatinate, near the Moselle River in Germany.
Of the 14 people who were in the building, five were immediately removed and another six – among them a 2-year-old child – were released in the last hours, together with a dog. The efforts of the rescue crews continue.
The hotel “Reichschenke zum Ritter Götz” is a 17th century building. According to district attorney Peter Fritsen, construction work had been carried out in the building in the previous days, however it should be investigated whether and to what extent it was related to what happened. Fritsen said he has already ordered a homicide investigation.
Child and mother safe, father trapped
Two of the people still in the wreckage are believed to be seriously injured. Together with the child who was saved, his mother was also removed from the wreckage, while the father remains trapped. The family is originally from the Netherlands and visited the Moselle River area on holiday.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been so happy to see a child. We all had tears in our eyes. At first we thought they were all dead. But the child was in good spirits and gave us a very touching moment – even after 4,000 operations,” said Inspector Gerg Tois of the Civil Protection Service.
Dogs, drones and mobile contact
Rescue crews were initially in contact with some of the trapped people via mobile phone, while rescuers used special heavy equipment to gain safe access to the rubble and set up microphones to make contact with them possible.
The effort also continues with specially trained dogs and drones, while the building is still moving, at 5mm/hour, as shown by the special sensors installed.
Rhineland-Palatinate Interior Minister Michael Ebling thanked the rescuers for their efforts and said his thoughts were with the victims and their families. “It’s very rare for a building to collapse in this way,” he said. “Like a paper tower”, characteristically added the inspector of the Civil Protection Service Gerg Tois.
Source: RES-MPE
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