In Baden-Baden, flames break out of a luxury hotel at night. The guests stand on the street in bathrobes and pajamas. They are later questioned by the police – and suspicions arise.
Baden-Baden – Just a few weeks after its extensive renovation, a fire destroyed large parts of the luxury hotel “Badischer Hof” in Baden-Baden. Around 160 guests were brought to safety in good time on Thursday night.
According to initial estimates by the police, there was damage in the tens of millions. No one was injured, a police spokesman said. However, after discussions with hotel guests and employees, the investigators do not rule out the possibility of arson.
The police announced that there were findings that the fire started in two different places in the building early on Thursday morning, adding: “There are currently no concrete indications of a technical cause that could have led to the fires . “
The fire brigade was on duty around the hotel several hours after the first alarm. In the afternoon she was able to finish the fire fighting.
The fire broke out in the morning around 2.45 a.m., the flames in the meantime blazed out from the roof of the building. Hotel guests initially stood on the street in bathrobes and pajamas, they were looked after by the Red Cross.
“I’m still shocked,” said hotel director Benjamin Eichner of the newspaper “Badische Latest Nachrichten”. He was not in the hotel that night and received the call around 3:30 a.m. Hours later, he cannot assess the extent of the damage. “What I see is so terrible,” he said. The ballroom, restaurants and the spa department were destroyed.
According to Eichner, the “Badische Hof” was not fully booked on Thursday night, but it was almost fully booked for the coming weekend. Now the main thing is to cancel these guests. “We also have to make sure that everyone gets a roof over their heads.” The economic damage in view of the closure of the hotel cannot yet be estimated.
The “Badischer Hof” in Baden-Baden is the oldest palace hotel in Germany. Many great personalities have already been guests there. The hotel was built between 1807 and 1810 and then moved into the building of the former Capuchin monastery. The “Badischer Hof” is seen by many as a testimony to the glamorous era of Baden-Baden as a princely bath and a meeting place for the European aristocracy. It is the only house in the region that has its own thermal water connection.
After being taken over by a hotel group, the hotel had been renovated in the past few months and reopened in mid-July. dpa
