Dramatic scenes on Karl-Marx-Strasse on Friday evening. Within 60 minutes, strangers set fire to three houses. Strollers and electronic scrap burned in stairwells. Many residents panicked because of the flames and heavy smoke.
By Dirk Böttger and Olaf Wagner
House number 144 was particularly affected: smoke and toxic smoke blocked the way out. Tenants stood at the windows, on the balconies.
Even before the fire brigade arrived, a passing van driver noticed the people in mortal danger. The 38-year-old backed his car right up to the front of the house, enabling those seeking help to jump onto the roof and get to safety.
A woman was seriously injured when she jumped from the 2nd floor to save herself. The tenant says to the BZ: “My mother’s screams next door made me aware of the fire. I opened the apartment door, but the stairwell was completely filled with smoke. A tenant from the third floor just barely walked into my apartment. I then jumped out the window onto the roof of the van. I probably broke a rib doing it. But I can be glad that nothing else happened. I live. My apartment is completely sooty. Black the walls of fumes and smoke.”
The police and fire brigade had to partially break into apartments to evacuate tenants from the houses. Eight were injured and four were taken to a hospital for observation.
Residents of the “Taunus” retirement home on Harzer Strasse were rescued using a turntable ladder and escape hoods after a fire broke out in a room on the top floor at around 7:30 p.m.
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Around 7.40 a.m. the rescuers had to move out again. In the Vivantes Clinic on Rudower Strasse, nurses found a 61-year-old patient in his burning room.
In all cases, the fire department investigates on suspicion of arson.