food riot.
A fire in the cult pub Trend in Überruhr called the fire brigade into action on Monday night. The cause of the fire remains unclear so far.
Even two days after the fire in the Trend catering trade in Essen-Überruhr, the cause of the fire remains unclear. A statement from the police is still pending, but there is at least the message that a fire expert should now shed light on the darkness. “The on-site investigation is planned for Thursday afternoon (February 23), but the result is not expected before Friday,” explains a police spokeswoman.
The fire broke out in the night from Sunday to Monday (February 20). The call from the fire brigade surprised pub owner Bernd Schneidereit at around 2 a.m. His restaurant in the immediate vicinity of the Ruhrhalbinsel citizens’ meeting point at Nockwinkel 64 in Essen-Überruhr was engulfed in flames. When the rescue workers arrived on site, a pavilion in front of the restaurant was also on fire.
Bernd Schneidereit is still in shock. “I just can’t say much at the moment,” was his first comment when asked by this editorial team. “A series of talks with the police, experts and insurance companies are now waiting for me.” What is certain is that his pub was completely destroyed by the fire. “We are facing a core renovation here,” explains Schneidereit, struggling to regain composure.
So far, the host suspects that the fire started in the pavilion and then spread to the restaurant. This emerges from a video from a surveillance camera installed on site. The fire expert will therefore clarify the cause of the fire on site together with the police.
Fire brigade operation in Essen-Überruhr began at 1:28 a.m
Even the fire brigade has not yet been able to confirm Schneidereit’s suspicion: “The operation began on Monday, February 20, at 1:28 a.m.,” explains fire brigade spokesman Dieter Kampschroer. “When the colleagues arrived on site with one and a half fire engines, both the pavilion and the restaurant were on fire. It is now the task of the detectives to clarify the exact cause of the fire.” Both the outside and the inside were extinguished with two C-pipes, which are often used in fires of this magnitude. The fire brigade did not put out the fire until around four in the morning and moved away again after a final check.
Neighboring citizens’ meeting was closed for the time being and all activities were cancelled
The neighboring community center was also affected by the fire. On Tuesday, Uwe Hesse, chairman of the “BürgerTreff Ruhrhalbinsel eV” founded in 2015, took a look for himself on site. “The sanitary facility of the meeting place is sooty, the rooms are filled with smoke because the smoke from the restaurant was coming into our rooms through the ventilation shafts,” says Uwe Hesse, describing his first impression.
The floors in the foyer and the small hall may have been damaged. “This must now be clarified by an expert,” Uwe Hesse continues. In any case, the first thing on the agenda for the community meeting is a massive thorough cleaning. All planned activities and events in the community meeting have therefore been spontaneously canceled until further notice. It is not yet clear how long the house will remain closed.
Spontaneous fundraiser to help rebuild the cult pub
That’s probably not all for landlord Bernd Schneidereit. After the serious fire, his existence is obviously at stake. The solidarity in Essen is great. A fundraiser (donation campaign.de) was launched, in which 122 donors took part by midday on Wednesday (February 21) and had raised 7,270 euros so far. So far, the appeal for donations has been clicked on more than 1,100 times on the donation campaign.de portal. It is hoped that this campaign will bring a total of 10,000 euros to alleviate the first dry spell and lay the foundation for the reconstruction of the cult pub.
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