Graben-Neudorf (dpa/lsw) – Seven people, including five children, were slightly injured in a fire in an asylum accommodation in the Karlsruhe district. Negligent arson is assumed, the police said on Friday. “There are no indications of a xenophobic act,” it said.

The fire broke out on Friday night in the washing machine room in the basement of the house in Graben-Neudorf. As a result, a cable duct caught fire and there was a lot of smoke. According to the information, 35 residents had to be rescued by the emergency services and looked after in a hall. The seven slightly injured were taken to hospitals with suspected smoke inhalation. The building can now be inhabited again.