Overview
- The blaze, which started around 11 p.m. Wednesday in a corner building beside a watchtower, severely damaged parts of the 12th-century Runneburg in Weißensee.
- Fire crews from several towns fought the flames for hours and finished operations around 4 a.m. Thursday with support from a police helicopter and a drone.
- No injuries were reported, though wind drove embers onto nearby streets and damaged several parked cars.
- Police said the cause remains unknown, and it is not yet clear when investigators can enter the site to begin a full assessment.
- The Romanesque stronghold, called the “little sister” of the Wartburg, preserves unusually intact medieval stonework, which heightens concern about irreplaceable heritage loss.