Fire destroys two outbuildings in Linz settlement

A fire destroyed a storage building and a garden shed on neighbouring properties in a residential settlement in southern Linz on Tuesday evening, ORF reported. Nearby homes were not at risk.

The blaze broke out at about 10 p.m. and was visible from a distance. Neighbours alerted the fire service. When crews arrived, both outbuildings were fully ablaze, with flames shooting several metres above the garden shed’s roof.

The Linz professional fire brigade and the Ebelsberg volunteer fire brigade tackled the fire from two sides. A total of 42 firefighters took part in the operation.

Crews initially searched the affected buildings after neighbours said someone might still be inside. Police found the resident in the main building, where he had been asleep and had not noticed the fire. Paramedics treated him, but he did not need to go to hospital.

Two plastic gas cylinders were inside the outbuildings. Heat damaged one so badly that all its gas escaped; the safety valve on the other activated. Firefighters cooled the cylinders and moved them outside.

The fire was extinguished quickly, and the operation ended after about three hours. The cause remains unclear.