On Sunday evening at 6:13 p.m., the Mainz Fire Department was called to a chimney fire on Kaninchenpfad in Mainz-Bretzenheim. Residents had noticed unusual smoke coming from the wood-burning stove and chimney and had consequently alerted the fire department.
When the fire department arrived, dark smoke was visible at the top of the chimney, even though the homeowner had already extinguished the fire in the stove. This was a clear indication of a chimney fire. The turntable ladder was
put into position to reach the chimney. A team wearing breathing apparatus climbed into the basket of the turntable ladder and began sweeping the chimney from above using special chimney sweeping tools. At the same time
, another team was deployed in front of the chimney cleaning hatch in the basement of the building to check the chimney from below. A chimney mirror was used to detect a bed of embers in the chimney pipe.
The chimney was swept downwards several times. This allowed the burning soot in the chimney to be removed and taken out of the chimney. A final inspection revealed that the chimney was clear again.
During the operation, another team checked the chimney inside the building with a thermal imaging camera.
The slightly smoky building was ventilated. The site was then handed over to the responsible district chimney sweep.
After an hour, the fire department's operation was complete.

Head of operations: Fire Department Councilor René Adler
Vehicles BF/FF: 4/1
Personnel BF/FF: 16/8

At around 5 p.m., the fire department was alerted to a fire alarm in the industrial park in Mainz-Bretzenheim.
On site, it was discovered that the social area of a commercial property was completely filled with smoke. At this point, two people were still missing in this area. A rescue operation was immediately initiated and additional fire department personnel were called to the scene. The two young people were found, brought outside, given first aid by the emergency medical services on site, and then taken to a hospital in Mainz.

A first responder who had attempted to extinguish the fire with a bucket of water also had to be treated by the emergency medical services.

A restaurant and a bowling center had to be evacuated for the duration of the fire department and police operation. Once the fire department had completed its work, the guests were able to return to the building unharmed.

Due to the use of the social area in the building, the Central Enforcement and Investigation Service of the City of Mainz was called in to initiate further investigative steps.

Head of operations: Fire officer Katja Stock Fire department
vehicles: 5/2 Fire department
personnel: 17/17

Shortly after 4:30 p.m., a traffic accident involving two cars and a truck occurred on the A60 motorway, in the direction of Bingen, just after the Mainz Süd junction. Due to the unclear situation and reports of severely damaged vehicles, the control center alerted the professional fire department and emergency medical services.

At the scene of the accident, the roadway was completely blocked by the damaged vehicles and debris. The lack of an emergency lane made it difficult for the emergency services to reach the scene. Traffic was also backed up in the opposite direction due to onlookers who were slow to form an emergency lane.
The emergency services even had to walk the last few meters because it was impossible to get through. By then, the fire department had provided first aid to those involved in the accident. Fortunately, the four people involved in the accident were uninjured enough to remain at the scene after being examined by paramedics.

While the truck loaded with champagne was able to continue its journey, the two cars had to be towed away. The highway in the direction of Bingen had to remain completely closed for almost 90 minutes for the cleanup and recovery work.

In connection with this operation, the fire department would like to point out once again that an emergency lane must be formed immediately when traffic comes to a standstill. Failure to form an emergency lane wastes valuable time in which accident victims have to wait for urgently needed help.

Head of operations: Michael Ehresmann Fire
department/fire brigade vehicles: 3/0 Fire
department/fire brigade personnel: 11/0

On Thursday afternoon, firefighters and emergency services were called to a hotel in Mainz-Weisenau due to a chlorine gas leak. One person was slightly injured.

At 1:50 p.m., an employee of a hotel in Mainz-Weisenau reported that chlorine gas had leaked in the basement area of the swimming pool.

As the amount of gas leaked was unknown and chlorine gas is highly toxic when inhaled, extensive emergency services were alerted. In addition to the Mainz professional fire department and the Weisenau volunteer fire department, the emergency services and the health section management were mobilized with two rapid response teams.

A strong smell of chlorine gas was already noticeable outside the hotel. While a team wearing heavy breathing apparatus searched for the cause of the gas leak in the affected technical room in the basement, the hotel was completely evacuated. One employee had inhaled chlorine and was treated by the emergency medical services. He suffered minor injuries.

In the basement, the firefighters determined that a chemical reaction had occurred in a canister containing sulfuric acid in combination with another substance. As a result, chlorine gas had formed in this canister. After the firefighters had taken the canister outside, it was packed into an airtight barrel so that no more gas could escape.

Due to the strong smell of chlorine in the hotel, it was ventilated with several high-performance fans. In addition, the fire department checked whether there was still chlorine in the air. During the operation, a firefighter fell and had to be taken to hospital with minor injuries. The other hotel guests were able to return to their rooms after just over two hours.

Friedrich-Ebert-Straße was completely closed for almost two hours. The trade inspectorate is now investigating the cause and when the swimming pool facility can be put back into operation. During the operation, the volunteer fire departments of Bretzenheim, Marienborn, Mombach, and Stadt provided basic protection for the city of Mainz by being on standby at their fire stations.

The fire department's operation was completed after three hours.

Head of operations: Senior Fire Director Martin Spehr
Vehicles BF/FF: 11/1
Personnel BF/FF: 30/7

At around 4:30 p.m., the Mainz Fire Department received an emergency call via 112 from a construction site on Haifa-Allee in Mainz-Bretzenheim. Based on the report, the rescue control center dispatched an ambulance and an emergency doctor vehicle, while the fire department sent a fire engine, a turntable ladder, and an incident command vehicle.

A seriously injured construction worker was found at the scene, who had fallen several meters from a ladder. The fire department and rescue services first stabilized the patient so that he was stable enough to be transported to the hospital. Since transport via the scaffolding was not possible, the remaining fire department personnel, together with the construction workers present, prepared the scene so that the patient could be rescued quickly and gently from the construction site using the turntable ladder.

Due to the location of the construction site, Haifa-Allee had to be temporarily closed for the rescue operation. The patient was transported by the emergency services to a hospital in Mainz. The police have launched an investigation to determine the cause of the accident.

Head of operations: Fire officer Jan Peuser Fire department
vehicles: 3 Fire
department/fire brigade personnel: 10
Images in the appendix: Image rights belong to the Mainz city administration.