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Fallen door saved Dutch mother, toddler's lives in German hotel collapse
A Dutch boy of nearly 2 and his mother (23) survived a hotel in Koev, Germany, collapsing around them because a door fell on them and shielded them from the rubble. The father of the family (26) also survived but was stuck under the rubble for hours. He was rescued early this afternoon with severe injuries but is not in mortal danger, NOS reports after a press conference by the German emergency services.
Rescue workers could not believe their eyes when they pulled the squirming toddler out of the rubble with his sleeping bag still on. His mother followed shortly after. “We thought we wouldn’t find anyone alive,” a rescue worker said in the press conference.
Man uit Urk nog vast onder puin Duits hotel: vrouw (23) en kind (1) gered https://t.co/vgecfvz2os pic.twitter.com/48Mf9jzlKn
— RTL Nieuws (@RTLnieuws) August 7, 2024
The Reichsschenke Zum Ritter Götz hotel collapsed for still unknown reasons at around 11:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Two people died in the collapse. Their identities have not been released.
Two other people are still trapped. The emergency services are working hard to get to them. That is challenging because the building could collapse further. “But all energy is focused on saving these people,” an emergency worker said. They expected the rescue to take several more hours.
In Urk, it quickly became clear that the Dutch family involved in the collapse were local. The woman works as an editor for the local newspaper. The municipality is also in contact with the family. “We sympathize very much and pray for the loved ones of everyone who was trapped,” a municipal spokesperson told Omroep Flevoland.
Kroev, in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, is a popular vacation spot for Dutch people. It is located next to the Moselle River and close to the Dutch border, about 2.5 hours from Maastricht.
The building dates from the 17th century, but two floors were added in the 1980s. The ceiling is made of concrete to support the extra floors. The local fire brigade reported that construction work was done on the building on Tuesday. It is not yet clear whether that is related to the collapse.