ESCHWEILER/Germany: A powerful explosion in a residential and office building in Eschweiler near Aachen injured 15 people on Thursday evening.
Two of the injured – including a baby – were in critical condition. Many people were suffering from severe burns. Two firefighters were also injured during the rescue operations. No one has been reported missing.
Rescue workers assumed a gas explosion was the cause, with the force of the blast shattering windows in a 50-metre radius and opposite the building.
“It is currently unclear whether it was an accident,” a spokeswoman for Aachen police said on Friday morning. “We are investigating in all directions,” said a spokeswoman for the Aachen public prosecutor’s office.
At least 150 metres of the nearby pedestrian zone were blocked off while at least 20 other buildings were damaged in the ensuing fire, with the rear building completely burned out.
The explosion was reported at 9:19 pm (1919 GMT) on Thursday evening. At least 200 rescue workers were involved in the emergency response operation, extinguishing the fire by around 2 am after a lenghty operation.
Eschweiler, a town of nearly 56,000, is located between Aachen and Cologne.
