As of midnight, the death toll remained provisional. The shooter is believed to be among those killed. The shots were reportedly fired at a place of worship of Jehovah’s Witnesses.
“Gunshots” were fired at a place of worship in the Gross Borstel district of Hamburg, and “several” people were killed and others seriously injured, police in the northern German metropolis said on Thursday. The facts allegedly took place in a Kingdom Hall, the place of worship of Jehovah’s Witnesses, in the north of the city, around 9:00 p.m., according to the popular daily Picture . The shooter was among those killed, police said. There is “indications that a perpetrator is possibly in the building, possibly even among the dead”, said a spokesman for the police on the NTV television channel. The police had, at midnight, “no indication of fugitive perpetrators”.
“Bloodbath”
The daily Picture evokes a “bloodbath” and spoke at midnight of at least seven dead and eight seriously injured. The police “were called around 9:15 p.m. to report shots fired in the building” of three floors, located in the district of Gross Borstel, north of the second largest city in Germany, reported a spokesman for the police on the NTV channel. The intervention forces have “entered the building very quickly and found dead and seriously injured people there”, according to this spokesperson. Inside, officers also heard a gunshot “coming from the upper part of the building” and found another person, the spokesperson continued, pointing out “not yet able to give any indications” on mobile. “In the evening, there was a demonstration of Jehovah’s Witnesses in the building”he added.
“Avoid the danger zone. In the danger zone, stay where you are and do not go outside at this time”had asked the Office in a press release. “So far there is no reliable information on the motive of the crime”said the police on Twitter. “A large number of police forces are on site”, added the police. According to several media, the population of the port city had been warned of a “extreme danger” via the disaster alert app, with police calling to avoid the affected area. “Take shelter immediately in a building”added the message asking to “only call in cases of extreme urgency, so as not to overload the lines”.
The mayor of Hamburg, Peter Tschentscher (SPD) presented his “sincere condolences to the families of the victims”. “Emergency services are working hard to find the perpetrators and clarify the context”he added on his Twitter account.