A fire swept through the mountaintop retreat built for Adolf Hitler and known as the Eagle's Nest as emergency services struggled to tackle the blaze in snow and wind, and a man was arrested on suspicion of arson, authorities said Saturday.

Emergency services in the Berchtesgaden district, in the Bavarian Alps in Germany's southeastern corner, were alerted to the fire by an alarm at about 9:15 p.m. Friday.

Firefighters and police rushed to the scene - located at the end of a narrow road that winds up the mountain, in part through a series of tunnels - and could see the flames as they approached.