The owners of the collapsed hotel were probably trying to warn guests
Shock and disbelief in Kröv: How could the deadly hotel collapse have happened? Apparently, the owners tried to warn the vacationers in the fateful night. The hotel, which was up for sale, had been making increasingly loud cracking noises.
After the shock comes disbelief in Kröv, about how a hotel in the middle of town could collapse. "After the tragedy, the question on everyone's mind is: How could this have happened?" said Mayor Desire Beth. In the late Tuesday evening disaster, nine people were buried: a man, probably the hotel owner, and a woman died, seven people were injured. The last survivor was rescued from the rubble late Wednesday evening.
A friend of the family told of how the hotel owners had tried to warn the vacationers because the cracking noises in the house were getting louder. According to SWR, a vacationer also reported that around 11 pm on the night of the disaster, the beams were creaking and there was a knock at the door. The hotel manager then urged the woman to leave the building immediately. But just as she was about to do so, part of the walls collapsed and the women barely managed to escape onto the balcony.
The Trier Public Prosecutor's Office has since initiated a death investigation. Lead Trier Senior Public Prosecutor Peter Fritzen confirmed that a crack had been noticed in the building before it collapsed, and experts had been called in and repair work had been carried out, but the details are still unclear. There still seems to be movement in the building: "It has been creaking and cracking all night," said a resident.
Building still highly unstable
On Thursday, an expert also inspected the site. He examined the ground around the building, which had settled and had a complete floor collapse. He also entered part of the hotel, which was for sale for around 600,000 euros. The news: The building is still highly unstable. Before the last body can be recovered from the rubble, demolition is to begin on Friday, as a police spokeswoman said. A special company will bring in special equipment for this. During the work, a 150-meter radius will be cordoned off around the hotel - also due to the possible presence of asbestos.
The rescued people, who had to endure for hours under the rubble, are physically relatively well, said police spokeswoman Romy Berger. There are fractures and scrapes. The greater problem will likely be the psychological stress. Among the injured is a small family from the Dutch town of Urk on the Ijsselmeer with a two-year-old child.
What the buried people had to endure in the hours until their rescue can only be imagined from the sight of the house. The last survivor rescued was trapped for almost 24 hours - in a bent position and with concrete slabs on her back, according to a spokesman. She received drinks and food in a pureed form and a pillow to rest her head from the rescuers.
Carried out to applause
At the end of the rescue operation, she was carried out of the building to loud applause from the helpers. "She is remarkably stable and wanted to walk out herself," said Joerg Teusch, the fire and disaster protection inspector of the Bernkastel-Wittlich district, in the evening. "We prevented her from doing so and carried her out."
One of the buried women prayed a lot, as she recounted. "We knew we would be helped," said Erika Sorm from Baden-Württemberg. She and other victims had been optimistic throughout. Faith had helped them, she said. After their rescue, she first thought of her dog, who had been rescued earlier. He had been buried elsewhere and had tried to dig his way to her. He was fine - she too had remained nearly unharmed, she said. Sorm had traveled to the Mosel for a few days' vacation with two friends.
Dead Body Lies in Particularly Instability-Prone Area of the Hotel
The body still in the house, likely belonging to the hotel owner, is located in the most instability-prone area, said the police spokesperson. No information was given on possible causes for the collapse with two fatalities. On site, reference was made to the investigation by the Trier public prosecutor's office.
The first deputy mayor of the municipality of Kröv, Martin Rolf, said the residents of Kröv were still struggling to grasp what had happened. "It's so terrible," said a resident of the Moselle town with around 2,300 inhabitants. A street festival planned for the weekend near the incident site was cancelled.
The historic hotel with the inn, whose origins date back to the 17th century, holds great significance for the town. A section of the hotel complex - the front house is a cultural monument - had to be inspected by experts, Rolf reported. "There was a crack. It was inspected. It was under observation." He could not say if there was a connection to the collapse.
Despite the efforts to repair the noticeable crack in the building before its collapse, the Trier Public Prosecutor's Office has initiated an investigation, as the cause of the tragic incident remains uncertain. The unfortunate situation has left the residents of Kröv in disarray, with a local resident commenting, "It has been creaking and cracking all night."
