Bomb goes off in downtown Cologne

German police have reported that one person sustained minor injuries as a result, with the suspect still at large

German police have sealed off downtown Cologne following an explosion in the Hohenzollernring area, known as the city’s main entertainment district. Officials have revealed that one man sustained minor injuries in the incident, with authorities searching for a suspect caught on CCTV footage.

In a statement on Monday, Cologne police revealed that the blast occurred at around 5.45am that same day, leaving the 53-year-old man wounded. The explosion also inflicted serious damage to the doors and windows of the building outside which it took place.

“On the basis of police video surveillance records, the police are searching for a man that is believed to be connected with the act, and who ran toward Friesenplatz after the explosion,” the statement reads. The suspect was dressed in a white-and-blue coat, dark pants and sneakers, the authorities reported.

Videoüberwachung zeigt #Explosion in #Köln pic.twitter.com/LS8ZVlqgSU

— optimuz (@optimuzpoet) September 16, 2024

According to the police, the crime scene remains cordoned off as investigators still work there.

Earlier in the day, several media outlets reported that the explosion had taken place outside the Vanity Club nightclub.

According to the local press, a small fire broke out immediately after the blast, which had been extinguished by the time firefighters arrived.

EXPRESS.DE quoted local resident Santo Sposito as claiming to have seen several individuals running away from the scene in the immediate aftermath of the incident.

Bild released what appears to be CCTV footage of the moments leading up to the blast. It shows a man dumping a bag outside Vanity Club, then setting fire to an unidentified object and throwing it inside the bag. The package subsequently explodes.