Overview
- Emergency services were alerted around 6:50 p.m. Friday to the collapse on Schöppenstedter Stieg in the Lower Saxony town.
- Firefighters, police, paramedics, and the THW launched a large search-and-rescue operation focused on possible people trapped in the rubble.
- Sixteen residents from affected houses are being cared for by responders, according to the DPA.
- Residents reported a blast wave, neighboring houses were damaged, and police set a wide cordon with appeals for the public to keep clear.
- A cellar fire produced dense smoke as crews fought the blaze and the city utility reportedly shut off gas to the building; the cause remains under investigation.