Oktoberfest fire in California: restaurant owner rescues visitors and becomes a hero

Five people were injured when A fire occurred during a series of explosions in an underground electric storage facility during a Oktoberfest celebration in a German theme shopping and dining complex in Southern California. Writes about it USA Today.

Фото: Depositphotos

According to Jeff, the chief of the battalion of the city fire department, two firefighters and two restaurant employees were hospitalized with minor injuries.

"He is a hero"

Bernie Bischoff, owner of the Old World restaurant, was seriously injured during the explosion. He was hospitalized with second and third degree burns on 38% of the body.

Noticing a strange smell from the storage area, Bischoff evacuated all visitors about 40 minutes before the explosion.

"He's a hero," Oktoberfest spokesman Dan Escamilla said, adding that more people could have been hurt if the restaurant had been full.

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The first explosion sprayed mineral oil, which was used to cool the transformers and possibly caused subsequent explosions, police said. The cause of the explosions is still under investigation.

Witnesses claim to have heard about three explosions that occurred during the annual celebration of Oktoberfest at 35 miles (56 miles) south of downtown Los Angeles.

26-year-old Megan Hawke said she saw flames rising from the floor near the patio.

“It was like a giant fireball that went up,” she said. “And then there was a second explosion, maybe 10 or 20 seconds later.”

According to her, the flame rose above the roof of the complex to 40 feet (12 m) in the air and enveloped the site of the celebration of Oktoberfest.

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Southern California crews worked all night to replace damaged transformers in storage and restore power, spokesman Robert Villegas said. According to him, 1700 consumers have lost electricity.

Pat Brassil said he was near the complex where Oktoberfest was celebrated. He saw a flame flashing near the entrance.

“It just lit up the sky,” Pat said in an interview. “Everyone went crazy and screamed.”

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