A police report posted on 2 April 2023 disclosed that around 1,000 hay bales burnt down at Paul Schockemöhle's Gestut Lewitz. Less than half a year ago, 20,000 straw bales caught fire and it took the fire brigade three days to extinguish it.
There have been numerous fires at Gestut Lewitz, the 3000 hectare breeding farm in Neustadt-Glewe, where Schockemohle rears 650 foals a year and stables 3500 horses.
Multiple Fires and Arson
In 2004, 3000 bales of hay caught fire and got ruined.
Between 2010 and 2012 there were three further incidents of fire at the stud 2010 an arson caused fire three times at the stud: first 4000 bales of hay burnt and three months later 10,000 bales of hay were destroyed. During a third incident, the culprit, 22-year old Fabian T, got caught red handed. He was found guilty in court and sentenced to five years in jail. His two accomplices were minors and were also convicted.
In 2018 an automatic feeder short-circuited and caught fire. There was damage for 300,000 euro.
In September 2022, a 500 meter row of 20,000 straw bales caught fire.
Hay Bales
On 2 April, the police and fire brigade were informed that hay bales were on fire southwest of the A24 in the Lewitzhof area.
A hay bale track of 150 meters long and 7 meters wide was on fire in the field. Ten meters burned initially, but the flames spread further due to the wind. The fire brigades from Neustadt Glewe, Hohewisch, Brenz, Blievenstorf, Groß Laasch and Neuhof were deployed to extinguish the fire.
Lewitz employees used working machines to pull the hay bale path apart over a length of 100 meters in an attempt to avoid even greater damage. Nevertheless, the controlled burning of around 1,000 hay bales could not be prevented. The property damage is estimated at 30,000 euro.
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