Berlin (TEH) – fire on the baroque facade, clouds of smoke over the city palace. A construction worker was slightly injuring the fire at the construction site of the Humboldt Forum in Berlin. Around ten o’clock in the morning, two containers with pour asphalt had caught fire, and a propane gas bottle also burst. The emergency services were able to extinguish the fire quickly, as a fire department spokesman said. In the morning, a huge cloud of smoke could be seen above the 644 million euro building in the center of the capital, with black traces of soot on the reconstructed baroque style.
A spokesman for the forum had initially spoken of an outdoor explosion. The incident occurred at ten o’clock in a portal to the Schlueterhof, he told the German press agency. Several workers were brought from the construction site, the fire department extinguished the fire and the smoke quickly clea The slightly in construction worker was taken to a hospital and the police initially did not expect the fire to start. “According to current knowledge from our situation center, there is no evidence of intentional action,” the police tweeted. After the fire brigade deployment, a fire commissioner from the State Criminal Police Office (LKA) was to take over the investigation, and the Humboldt Forum was built in the new building.
The cultural and exhibition center is named after the researcher Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859) and his brother, the universal scholar Wilhelm von Humboldt (1767-1835). It is one of the largest construction sites in the city and is currently one of the most important cultural projects in Germany. The plans of the Italian architect Franco Stella combine reconstructions, particularly of the facade of the former Hohenzollern city palace, which was destroyed in 1950, with a modern version of the building. The forum is being built in the center of Berlin opposite the Museum Island on the site where the Palace of the Republic of the GDR, which was demolished in 2006, once stood.
The Humboldt Forum is one of the largest prestige projects in the German cultural landscape. The opening was originally planned last year, but then there were delays. The reasons included problems with fire protection, heating, and cooling. The first part is scheduled to open in September, and the Humboldt Forum does not see these plans endanger by the fire and the consequences. A spokesman for the forum said that there had been damage primarily in the outside area due to the smoke development, where the facade was affected. However, this has no impact on the construction work. However, the planned first part of the opening, which is to run in three stages until 2021, remains uncertain. The Humboldt Forum is currently also referring to the Corona crisis, which “is already having an impact on personnel capacities and material supplies their Companies “.
The bodies responsible for the construction want to “advise again in the second half of April about the status of the construction work,” it said. Minister of State for Culture Monika Grutters (CDU) was also cautious about the effects on the opening plans. “It is good that this incident does not exacerbate corona restrictions,” she said. “The branding above the palace portal scars all.” The 40,000 square meter center will in future be used by the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation with two of its museums, the State of Berlin and the Humboldt University. Exhibits from Asia, Africa, America, and Oceania as well as objects on the history of Berlin are to be shown.
