After the fatal jump of two people from a burning high-rise apartment in Berlin-Kreuzberg, the police are investigating on suspicion of serious arson. This is directed against the two deceased, a 45-year-old man and a 22-year-old woman, said a police spokesman on Saturday. But the investigation is still in its infancy.
The two jumped from the twelfth floor of a 15-story building on Friday afternoon to escape the fire. Flames were raging in the apartment behind them. Despite resuscitation, they died on the spot, as a fire department spokesman said. The apartment burned out, but the fire did not spread to other parts of the building. According to the police, the other apartments in the high-rise building are still habitable.
Although the fire brigade prepared a safety cushion and a turntable ladder for the large-scale operation on Friday afternoon, the two people who jumped from the twelfth floor probably had no chance. The safety cushion is designed for a maximum of 16 meters, but the twelfth floor means a height of more than 30 meters, said a fire department spokesman on Friday.
Wrongly parked cars would have delayed the extension of a turntable ladder, he added. However, even a turntable ladder is not sufficient for this height. “In a high-rise building, the escape route is inside,” said the spokesman. Ordinarily, one would not try to rescue someone from that height from the outside.
Fire brigade offered help from pastors
A number of residents took the stairs to safety themselves from the fire. An adult was taken out of the stairwell by firefighters. A spokesman said on Saturday that the emergency services had found him in the hallway on the twelfth floor.
A witness who lives on the ground floor of the house across the street told the German Press Agency that he noticed the fire and alerted the fire brigade. He heard calls for help from the fire in the apartment. The woman jumped very quickly to escape from the flames. The man first clung to the balcony and then let go. Several residents watched the drama for minutes. The fire brigade offered help from pastors, also for their own forces.
According to the fire brigade, the fire was extinguished after a good half hour at around 5:06 p.m. At the top, 116 emergency services were on site. The fire did not spread to other apartments in the concrete house. But the floors above the fire apartment were loaded with smoke.
The residential building is located on Lindenstrasse, not far from the Jewish Museum, which is well known to many tourists.
2023-07-29 20:41:53
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