A multi-family house is completely destroyed in a gas explosion in the Sauerland. Several people can be saved. But for a woman, any help comes too late.
After the violent explosion in an apartment building in Hemer, Sauerland, our worst fears were confirmed. In the morning a dead woman is found under the rubble. Around 8.50 a.m., the rescue workers were able to locate a female person who could only be rescued lifeless from the rubble, the police said in the morning. The identity of the woman is not yet certain.
The rescue workers continued to search in the morning. At around 3:00 a.m. on Saturday night, rescue workers had already recovered a man and a little later a woman from the remains of the house. According to fire department spokesman Andreas Schulte, both were "in acute danger of death". They were first given medical treatment on site and then taken to a clinic. The fire brigade had to be careful, but also quickly advance to the buried victims. "We worked our way very carefully so that we could speak to them and touch them," said Schulte. "Partly upside down," he added. "It was tedious work."
Two injured recovered on Friday
Two injured people had already been recovered on Friday evening. One of the victims was in the hospital with serious injuries, the other person was reportedly only slightly injured. The house is said to have been a six-party house. Three of the eight residents of the house were probably not at home at the time of the collapse. The apartment building was completely destroyed in the explosion on Friday. Aerial photos show a field of rubble where the house previously stood. The police and fire brigade are assuming a gas explosion.
"There is no stone left standing," said fire department spokesman Schulte. "I've seen quite a few buildings after a gas explosion, but I've never seen complete destruction on this scale," he later added. Meanwhile, a structural engineer had to clarify whether and how much the neighboring houses had suffered. Investigations into the cause of the explosion are ongoing. Hemer is near Iserlohn in the Märkisches Kreis.
