Kehlsteinhaus in Bavaria catches fire – police arrest motorcyclist
The Kehlsteinhaus near Berchtesgaden was ablaze on Friday evening. Police are investigating on suspicion of arson.
Major fire at Kehlsteinhaus – suspicion of arson
Shortly after 9 p.m. on Friday evening, firefighters and police were called to a major incident at the Kehlsteinhaus in Bavaria, as reported by oe24.at. When the emergency services arrived, the historic building was already ablaze; the glow from the fire was visible from far around.
On the way to the fire site, officers encountered a motorcyclist coming towards them, according to a police spokesman quoted in Bild. The firefighters who followed were informed, and the man was stopped and arrested. Police confirmed the suspicion of arson.
Whether the arrested man is actually connected to the fire remains unclear at this time. The precise cause of the fire is the subject of ongoing investigations.
Firefighters fought the flames; whether the building can still be saved was not immediately foreseeable. According to current knowledge, no injuries are expected. At the time of the fire, no one was reported to have been inside the building.
The Kehlsteinhaus is situated at approximately 1,834 metres elevation above Berchtesgaden and is considered one of the region's most well-known tourist attractions. It was built in 1937 and 1938 as a representative tea house for Adolf Hitler, though the building itself was rarely used by him. The building survived the Second World War largely undamaged. Since 1952 it has been operated as a mountain restaurant; today it is owned by the Free State of Bavaria, which also operates an exhibition on the Nazi history of the location there.
Source: Google News AT — Crime (de)