Germany: Major fire at Claus-Plural

On the night of February 8, 2010, a major fire completely destroyed the new building of the wholesaler Claus-Plural in Baden-Baden, which had been opened about two and a half years ago. The fire broke out in a truck at about 9.30 pm - the reasons for this are yet unknown. Neighbours only took notice of the fire by the burst of the truck tyres, and then alerted the fire department. Fire-fighting operations could not be started immediately, since a high-voltage line in close proximity needed to be disconnected first.
 

The fire spread to the entire company building (about 3000 sqare meters). Nobody got injured. A large number of firemen and policemen fought the fire until early in the next morning. The company estimates the total loss at 15 million euros, of eight million euros refer to stock. The warehouse stocking goods for France is not affected, therefore deliveries can be proceeded as normal. To replace the burnt down hall, the company is already trying to rent a new warehouse. „We were able to save our electronic data processing equipment and our customers will probably be able to reach us by telephone as usual starting this afternoon“, Ulrike Claus, managing director of Claus-Plural, stated. Currently, the company is working full speed to rebuild the supply chain as soon as possible.