Restaurant 't Nije Hemelriek in Gasselte destroyed by fire

“We got a report of a possible fire at around eleven o'clock,” Marcel van Alphen, spokesman for the Veiligheidsregio Drenthe, the regional fire and emergency service, told RTV Drenthe. “When we arrived, the whole building was already on fire. There was nothing left to save. We had to choose to let the building burn out under control.”

Fire crews from Tweede Exloërmond, Borger, Gasselternijveen, Vries, Annen and Gieten were called out. The restaurant stood in a remote spot in the middle of a forest, which made fighting the fire extra difficult: water had to be brought in by tankers. “We had to stop the fire from spreading to the forest,” said Van Alphen. “In the end we used a crane to demolish the building so we could reach the last pockets of fire. Without that, it would have kept smouldering.” The last crews did not return to the fire station until 4am.

An RTV Drenthe reporter spoke briefly to the owner on Tuesday morning. Asked “Are you with 't Nije Hemelriek?”, he replied: “I was, because there is nothing left of it.”

Swimming lake closed

According to the ranger, the 't Nije Hemelriek swimming lake will be closed for the time being. Among other things, soot has landed on the beach and has to be cleaned up, and the water in the lake is polluted and turning black.

The cause of the fire is not yet known. Staatsbosbeheer, the state forestry service, has started clearing up: a small team of staff is cleaning the beach, clearing the charred remains of the restaurant and removing insulation material from the trees.