The alarm about a fire in Hisings Backa came in to the rescue service at 3 pm on Wednesday afternoon. During the afternoon and evening, a major rescue operation involving police, ambulance and rescue services took place at the scene.
– Our theory is that the fire started in an apartment and then out to the balcony and from there up to the attic. We also suspect that there has been a spread between balconies, said Patrik Midenborn, press spokesperson at the Rescue Service in Gothenburg.
There are no reports of personal injuries.
VMA was issued
An important public notice, VMA, was issued by the emergency services. In it, everyone in the area was asked to go indoors to protect themselves from the spread of smoke. This was removed later in the evening.
Residents were evacuated
The entire building, and parts of nearby buildings, were evacuated.
According to the emergency services, the wind will burn down.
– We will be there with unchanged strength for a while longer, probably all night, says Patrik Midenborn.
The house is built of concrete and still stands stable. But in the stairwells there is some kind of glass structure built for light entry that has collapsed into several of them.
Investigated as arson
According to the police, the place is cordoned off during the extinguishing work. But an arson investigation has already started because the police cannot rule out that a crime has been committed.
Hans-Jörgen Ostler at the police says that their primary task during ongoing extinguishing work is to keep the public at a safe distance from the fire.
– We support the emergency services in evacuating certain risers in the area, says Hans-Jörgen Ostler who is the press spokesperson for the police in the West region.
The emergency services remained at the scene at 9.30pm on Wednesday evening.
– The wind has completely burned off. There is no longer a risk of spreading, but we will remain and monitor the fire so that it does not spread to the underlying apartments, says Patrik Midenborn, press spokesperson at the rescue service.
