Suspect arrested after apartment blast in Germany injures emergency responders

A body was found at the property where a mother and son were living

Two police officers and several firefighters were injured in an explosion at an apartment building in Ratingen. Reuters

Police in Germany have arrested a suspect after a body was discovered and several emergency responders were injured in an explosion at an apartment.

Police and firefighters were called to assist a “helpless person” at an address in the western German town of Ratingen on Thursday but when they arrived there was an explosion at the door to the apartment, a police representative said.

A dead body was found in the apartment.

It was unclear what caused the explosion, said police and the interior ministry for the state of North Rhine-Westphalia.

Broadcaster ZDF reported that 10 firefighters and two police officers had been injured, and security sources could not rule out that the incident was a targeted attack.

The apartment owners' association notified police at about 8am that the mailbox of one of the residents was overflowing, ZDF reported, citing the state interior minister.

Police then called in firefighters to open the door to the flat where a mother and her son were living, and there was a fire in the room, the broadcaster reported.