According to the first findings of the structural engineers, the Dom-Aquarreé with the accidented aquarium does not have to be demolished. “The stability of the building has not been called into question,” Ephraim Gothe, the city councilor responsible for building in the Mitte district of Berlin, told Stern magazine. “So nobody has to worry about the building collapsing.” The operator immediately put the entire house out of operation until all the damage had been repaired. The ground floor is particularly affected. The work would take several months.
Berlin’s governing mayor Franziska Giffey had previously spoken of “major demolition work”. She had visited the scene of the accident at noon, which is only a few meters from her official residence in the red rest house.
From the point of view of the responsible construction supervision, material fatigue is the probable cause of the accident. Berlin’s interior senator had previously expressed this assumption. It is still speculation at the moment, said Mitte’s city councilor, but so far there have been no signs of willful destruction. The police haven’t found any clues either.
According to the operator, the aquarium, which was built in 2002, was last extensively serviced two years ago.
