Environmental Alarm: Major Fire at Emco Company in Hallein

The fire department issued the highest alarm level. The residents of Hallein and the neighboring communities of Oberalm, Puch, and Anif were urged via the mobile alert AT-Alert to keep their windows closed due to the heavy smoke and to leave areas where smoke is noticeable, according to the state of Salzburg.

Fire Department in Major Operation, Difficult Firefighting Effort

"The good news: There are no injuries," said fire department spokesman Rupert Unterwurzacher to APA. By 8:00 PM, around 300 firefighters with 49 vehicles from the entire surrounding area - including from the state capital and neighboring Bavaria - were in action. At that time, the fire was under control enough that the buildings around the hall were not in danger. However, the firefighting effort itself was difficult because a small part of the hall had collapsed. With breathing apparatus teams, they slowly worked their way to the source of the fire.

The fire department had already declared alarm level 4 shortly after the alert, which is the highest level. At that time, a huge black column of smoke was already rising from the hall, which could still be seen in the city of Salzburg. The request to keep windows closed "still applies currently, but the district administration will give the all-clear as soon as the situation has improved," said Unterwurzacher.

Damage Extent and Cause of Fire Still Unclear

There was no information available in the evening about the cause of the fire or the extent of the damage. "It's terrible, it hits right at the heart of our production," said works council Baldur Eibl to the "Salzburger Nachrichten". "After hard years, we had finally gotten back on our feet, and now this." Of course, one must wait to see how much has ultimately been destroyed. "But it looks bad," said Eibl.

According to Unterwurzacher, the fire departments will be occupied with firefighting measures at least well into the night.

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.