A beach restaurant on the promenade in Westerland burned down early this morning. The building can no longer be saved, said the fire brigade leader of the Sylt community, Siegfried Engel, of the German Press Agency.

"It's completely over." Some houses nearby were evacuated because of the heavy smoke. The apartments should be released again promptly after the fire brigade has measured the pollutants. In the morning, the fire brigade was still busy putting out the fire.

No one was injured in the fire, a police spokeswoman said. The cause of the fire and the extent of the damage were not yet known. At 6:19 a.m., a fire on the roof was initially reported. Almost half an hour later, the message came that the building was on fire. Because of the smoke, the population had been asked to keep windows and doors closed and to switch off the ventilation and air conditioning systems.