The lobby of the five-star hotel seemed to have been damaged by an explosion. In addition to mangled Christmas decorations, bent poles and window frames, and even small shampoo bottles, the roadway was covered with the remains of around 1,500 tropical fish that were housed in a tank known as the AquaDom that was destroyed by the explosion.
There was little chance for the survival of any marine life that made it through the first explosion of the cylinder-shaped AquaDom, which was marketed as the biggest tank of its sort in the world. They were found lying still and frozen on the sidewalk in front of the Radisson Hotel in Alexanderplatz, Berlin, when the temperature was a bone-chilling 19 degrees Fahrenheit.
Markus Kamrad, an official at the Berlin Senate responsible for animal protection, described the situation as “a catastrophe for the fish.” We may count our blessings that just two persons had minor injuries as a result of the incident, which took place at the time that it did. Nevertheless, it is regrettable that such a large number of fish perished.
The tank ruptured about 5:45 in the morning, according to the emergency services. It’s possible that a human tragedy might have ensued as a consequence had it taken place later in the day.
The AquaDom, which was situated in the middle of the hotel’s atrium, had a diameter of 38 feet and was encircled by a glass elevator, through which guests were able to see the marine life that was housed within. When the police at the site considered what could have happened to them if the tank had burst just a few hours later in the day, they could not help but shake their heads in disbelief.
Even several hours after the AquaDom ruptured, an entire block of the street outside the building remained soaked from the 264,000 gallons of water that rushed out of the lobby. The water had uprooted plants and ripped out telephones, which lay strewn among hundreds of chocolate balls from a neighbouring Lindt chocolate shop. These items were also battered by the force of a wave of water that the local media estimated would have weighed approximately 100 tonnes.
The force of the water when it erupted into the pavement was so significant that seismographs in the area registered it as an earthquake. A number of businesses in the area sustained damage, including broken glass and overturned chairs.
The authorities have said that they have no reason to suspect any kind of criminal activity. The media in the area speculated that a technological error was most likely to blame.
They were going to mount the top of the tank, and drop down into the building’s basement. The special rescue team of Berlin firemen hurried to the location in the early afternoon, donning hard helmets and prepared with carabiners and ropes.
The local authorities and the fire services first believed that all of the fish had been killed in the explosion; however, they later discovered that there were hundreds of more fish in the basement of the building. A few coral reef fish had also managed to live in the pool of water that was still present at the very bottom of the AquaDom after it had been broken.
According to Mr. Kamrad, the fish are now being transferred, one aquarium at a time, to the neighbouring Sea Life facilities. According to him, local veterinarian offices were also making preparations to set up aquariums in the event that more fish housing was required.
A video shot by Sandra Weeser, a member of the federal Parliament who was staying at the hotel, shows the shattered remains of the massive tank among the mangled remains of other vehicles and other objects.
Ms. Weeser recalled waking up to a shock wave that she believed to be a little earthquake before falling back asleep again during an interview that was shown on a regional television station.
She went back to sleep for an hour, and when she woke up, she was led out of the building by fire rescue personnel. On the way out, she saw a parrot fish that had been frozen to death.
