UPDATE 2-German minister Altmaier tumbles from stage at conference, taken to hospital

German Economy Minister Peter Altmaier tumbled from the stage at a conference in Dortmund on Tuesday and was briefly unconscious, broadcaster NTV reported.

He was speaking a short while later and was well enough to thank medics, NTV said. He was examined at a hospital, a hospital spokeswoman said. Television footage showed Altmaier, aged 61, stepping down from the podium at the end of his speech. The feed then cut to the audience applauding, before they gasped and their hands went to their mouths at the sight of his fall.

The Economy Ministry said in a statement: "Economy Minister Altmaier tripped on the stairs and fell when he was leaving the stage at the digital summit today." It did not mention if he had lost consciousness but said he was undergoing medical treatment. A planned news conference was canceled.

Emergency medics were joined by a doctor who was in the audience to give first aid to Altmaier, a close ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel after he fell from stairs leading from the stage, NTV's reporter said. She said the conference program, suspended after his fall, appeared set to resume.

No further details were immediately available. "A good, quick and complete recovery, dear Peter Altmaier," his colleague, Europe minister Michael Roth, wrote on Twitter.

A pro-European, Altmaier has been a strong advocate of Franco-German initiatives to help Europe's traditional heavy industries respond to the challenge from digital upstarts from China and the United States.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)