ven, 22 mars 2024
A resident ignited a blaze at an Aarau asylum shelter, prompting an emergency evacuation of 70 people.
A resident of an asylum shelter in Aarau set fire to a room on Thursday. Around 70 people were evacuated from the civil defence facility due to heavy smoke.
According to the police, no one was injured. The suspected perpetrator was arrested.
The fire in the room of the facility right next to the cantonal hospital broke out shortly before 6 p.m., a spokesperson for the Aargau cantonal police told the Keystone-SDA news agency on request.
The police patrols that were deployed discovered a small fire in a room, said the spokesperson. The residents were evacuated as a precaution because of the smoke.
The asylum seekers affected were single men. They were temporarily taken to rooms in the cantonal hospital.
According to initial findings, the police assumed that the fire was presumably started by a resident. The suspect was arrested.
The police launched an investigation into the exact cause of the fire. The amount of property damage was initially unclear.
©Keystone/SDA
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