News from Berlin

News from Berlin – In what officials believe was an act of arson, the much-loved ruin of a sixties-era pleasure park was razed to the ground on Sunday night. Investigation is currently underway to determine how and why multiple fires across the property began. Over a hundred firemen were deployed and after difficulty containing the situation the police were also summoned. Problems bringing water to the site also compounded the dire situation, which resulted in almost complete destruction of the site.

Originally opened in 1969 by the GDR as Kulturpark Plänterwald, the park ran until 2001 when it closed due to debt. Following the reunification of Berlin, an intensive renovation invited visitors of up to 1.5 million a year. Over time the park’s costs ballooned and visitors dwindled, until the owners announced that it was insolvent and moved to Lima, Peru, taking several rides and attractions to Peru with them. Since then the park has been a popular destination to shoot films, including the 2011 action thriller Hanna starring Saoirse Ronan and Eric Bana, and for urban explorers the world over drawn by the romance of the decaying rides.

The destruction of the site was greeted with widespread dismay, although there have been plans for a new development on the site for several years which was impeded by the delay in demolishing the existing structures.

News from Berlin – Berlin Global