What to Do in Case of Fire (2002) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

The bomb they created in 1987 was hidden in a vacant villa in Grunewald with a timer mechanism designed to activate later. However, the timer malfunctioned, causing the explosive to remain dormant for an astonishing 12 years until a real estate broker and potential buyer accidentally triggered it in the present day.

Foreshadowing: The timeline explicitly mentions the timer malfunction when the bomb is concealed in 1987, setting up the later explosion.

• timer malfunction
• homemade bomb
• Grunewald
• 12 years
• explosion

When the dormant bomb finally exploded in the villa, it injured a real estate broker and a potential buyer. Because the bomb was linked to their old revolutionary activities from 1987, the police launched a manhunt for the original 'terrorists' - Tim and Hotte - blaming them for the explosion and labeling them as dangerous radicals again.

• police manhunt
• Tim
• Hotte
• terrorists
• explosion
• suspects

Facing potential arrest and a smear campaign by authorities, the remaining rebels devised the infiltration plan to accomplish three goals: reclaim their lost propaganda footage from the evidence room, clear their names of the terrorism accusations, and rewrite the controversial story of their past actions. The plan involved posing as a television news crew to gain access.

• infiltration
• police headquarters
• evidence room
• clear names
• TV crew
• footage

Hotte hid inside the crate containing the second homemade bomb to ensure it was properly placed in the evidence room. However, after positioning the device, he found himself trapped when the emergency exit door jammed. Without his wheelchair and forced to use a dolly, he couldn't escape on his own, and his attempts to contact his fellow rebels initially failed because everyone was preoccupied.

• Hotte
• trapped
• evidence room
• crate
• wheelchair
• jammed door

During the confrontation in the evidence room, Tim managed to handcuff Manowsky to the cage and considered leaving the bomb with him. However, his comrades convinced him not to commit murder. Despite their revolutionary past and the provocation from Manowsky's condescending lecture about their 'outdated ideals,' Tim ultimately chose not to kill and instead tossed the keys back to the officer before escaping.

• Tim
• Manowsky
• handcuffs
• murder
• evidence room
• escape

The rebels smuggled a second homemade bomb into the evidence room, disguised as a Trojan horse inside a crate from their old building. While Hotte was trapped inside and the group was focused on escaping, the bomb was left in the evidence room. Manowsky ultimately chose to leave the bomb where it was, destroying the evidence against the rebels rather than risk detonation.

Foreshadowing: The plan was to place the bomb alphabetically by location, which later allowed Manowsky to make his pivotal choice.

• second bomb
• evidence room
• Trojan horse
• Manowsky
• destroyed evidence

Tim ignites the crucial propaganda film they had retrieved, asking 'What do you do if there's a fire?' His companions respond 'Let it burn!' This symbolic act represents their readiness to let go of their revolutionary past, embrace their identity as rebels willing to take daring risks, and move forward into an uncertain future. It marks an ambiguous farewell to their youthful ideals rather than a clear victory.

• film
• burn
• S-Bahn
• fire
• symbolism
• revolutionary past
• ending

Flo, Tim's ex-lover, has seemingly abandoned her radical ways for a life of tranquility. When the group reconnects, she shares her distressing circumstances, forcing her to reckon with the ramifications of her youthful choices. Her transformation represents one of the different paths former rebels can take - some clinging to ideals while others seek normalcy.

• Flo
• ex-lover
• normal life
• rebellion
• past choices
• transformation

Maik, once a passionate rebel, became a creative director who exploits radical imagery for commercial advertising. This represents the film's satirical commentary on how revolutionary ideals get commodified and commercialized. His character embodies the tension between authentic radicalism and its co-optation by consumer culture.

• Maik
• advertising
• creative director
• radical imagery
• commercialization
• satire

After being handcuffed by Tim and lectured about his 'stubborn attachment to outdated ideals,' Manowsky experiences a change of heart. Watching the rebels escape with a water cannon while Henkel expresses doubt, Manowsky wrestles with empathy for his former counterparts and his old values. He makes the pivotal choice to leave the incriminating bomb in the evidence room, destroying evidence against them rather than stopping their escape.

• Manowsky
• police
• empathy
• escape
• bomb
• evidence
• choice

The disguise as a TV news crew was essential because it provided a plausible reason to access restricted areas of police headquarters, particularly the evidence room. Henkel, the Bonn technocrat focused on public relations, guided the fake 'TV crew' through the precinct, creating the opportunity to reach the damning material. This scheme exploited the tensions between traditional policing methods and modern PR-focused law enforcement.

• TV crew disguise
• infiltration
• police headquarters
• evidence room
• Henkel
• access