By Bernhard Sprengel, dpa
An unidentified individual released irritant gas on Saturday at the Miniatur Wunderland in Hamburg, one of the most popular tourist attractions in the northern German city and considered the largest model train exhibition in the world.
The incident left 46 people with minor injuries, according to a police spokesman. Those affected suffered mild respiratory irritation. One person was taken to hospital; the rest were treated at the scene.
The fire brigade evacuated the building in the Speicherstadt district but cleared it for re-entry half an hour later.
The perpetrator remains unknown, though a cartridge was found at the scene, the spokesman said.
The Miniatur Wunderland’s model railway area currently spans more than 1,600 square metres. The exhibition, which features a track length of approximately 17,000 metres, is set to expand further in the coming years.
In early March, the 25-millionth visitor was welcomed.
The project was started by brothers Gerrit and Frederik Braun in 2001 and has been growing ever since.
In 2024 alone, almost 1.6 million people from all over the world visited the model railway landscape with its many world-famous attractions – like Italy’s Venetian lagoon, the Grand Canyon in the United States and Germany’s Neuschwanstein Castle – in miniature.
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