Investigation difficult

Searching for clues after the fire with one fatality

Neighbors were woken from their sleep by the fire in Rohrbach.

(Bild: zVg)

Day two after the devastating fire in Rohrbach: the investigation into the cause of the fire is difficult due to the massive damage. The tenants affected do not yet know what will happen next. But there are new insights into how a 53-year-old resident died.

"I have no idea, I don't know," answers Carla Kern, owner of the Rohrbacherhof, which is popular with short breaks, when asked how her bed and breakfast should continue after the terrible fire on Rohrbach's town square. She herself lives ten kilometers away from Rohrbach and was woken up at two o'clock in the morning by a member of staff who informed her about the fire. Her hotel is located at the rear of the building, which was engulfed by flames on Wednesday night and is currently closed by the authorities. Even the Asian restaurant on the ground floor only has an answering machine, while the bakery in the neighboring building was back to normal on Thursday.

The flames were blazing out of the windows on the second floor.

(Bild: MARTIN SCHARINGER / FOTOKERSCHI)

Difficult search for the cause of the fire
It is known that a 53-year-old local man died in the fire. According to initial investigations, he is said to have tried to save himself from the flames by jumping into a neighboring building and fatally fell from the second floor onto the sidewalk. The fire, which caused massive damage to the apartment building, is said to have broken out in his apartment.

Fire investigators were only able to enter the building for the first time late on Wednesday afternoon.

(Bild: Einöder Horst, Krone KREATIV)

Risk of collapse complicates investigations
Investigators from the State Office of Criminal Investigation are currently trying to clarify the cause of the fire, but this is difficult due to the massive overburden of rubble and the risk of collapse. They were only able to enter the 53-year-old's apartment for the first time late on Wednesday afternoon, but were unable to determine the exact cause of the fire due to the high level of destruction.

The Linz public prosecutor's office has ordered an autopsy of the deceased at the same time, but the results are still pending. According to the police, questioning the man who was rescued by firefighters at the last moment from the windowsill of his second-floor apartment would not have yielded any other information. There is to be a meeting on Friday where those affected will be informed about how to proceed with the case in terms of insurance.