Early-morning fire at Solingen's Clemens Galleries shopping centre contained

Thick smoke and activated sprinklers met firefighters at the scene. The blaze was under control within hours, but the restaurant faces repairs after soot and water damage.

, and Administrator

2026 May 10 . 2:04 AM

1 min read

The image shows a group of fire trucks parked next to each other in a parking lot surrounded by... — The image shows a group of fire trucks parked next to each other in a parking lot surrounded by buildings, trees, poles, and mountains in the background. The sky is filled with clouds and there is a water sprinkler spraying water on the vehicles.

Early-morning fire at Solingen's Clemens Galleries shopping centre contained

A fire broke out early Saturday at Solingen’s Clemens Galleries shopping centre. Emergency services responded swiftly after a fire alarm sounded at 12:18 a.m. Heavy smoke was later found in a ground-floor restaurant and a nearby retail store on the first floor. Firefighters arrived to discover thick smoke filling the restaurant and lighter smoke drifting into the store above. The sprinkler system had already activated, containing the flames before they could spread.

The fire department quickly upgraded the response to a 'F-Building' alert, bringing in extra crews. Around 25 responders from Solingen’s professional and volunteer units attended the scene. They ventilated the restaurant to clear the smoke and shut off the sprinklers in the affected area.

By 2:20 a.m., the operation was complete. The restaurant suffered minor fire damage, along with heavy soot and water damage from the sprinklers. The retail store’s ventilation system helped remove the remaining smoke. The incident caused visible damage to the restaurant, including soot and water from the suppression efforts. Firefighters confirmed the situation was fully under control before leaving the site. No further details on the cause have been released.