On Christmas Eve, shortly after 11 a.m., the Mainz fire department was alerted by an attentive neighbor to an apartment fire in Mainz's old town. On the fourth floor of a building complex on Quintinstraße, a mattress had caught fire for unknown reasons. The incident resulted in the hallway filling with smoke within a very short time, in addition to the apartment. Further investigations are being carried out by the criminal investigation department. The professional fire department was actively supported in its firefighting efforts by the city's volunteer fire department.

The resident was able to escape on his own and met the approaching firefighters in the stairwell. The emergency services transported the victim, who had inhaled smoke, to a hospital in Mainz for further examination. Other residents also had to be assisted by the fire department. In order to prevent smoke from entering the adjacent apartments, they had to be forcibly opened.

Due to the emergency measures, Quintinstraße was completely closed for an extended period of time, causing unexpected delays for some latecomers doing their last-minute Christmas shopping. Public transportation also had to contend with disruptions for the duration of the operation and set up a detour.

No information can be provided at this time regarding the extent of the property damage.

For the duration of the operation, volunteer crews from Bretzenheim, Marienborn, and Mombach were stationed at both fire stations. Fortunately, the operation was completed around 2 p.m., allowing the volunteer firefighters to return to their families in time for Christmas.

In addition to the fire department, the regular rescue service, police, and criminal investigation department were also on duty.

Head of operations: Fire Chief Inspector Nicolas Moutty
Vehicles BF/FF: 8/1

On Thursday night, a room fire broke out in Heiliggrabgasse in Mainz's old town, and several people were rescued by the fire department. Five people were injured.

At around 12:20 a.m., the fire department control center received an emergency call reporting a room fire on the first floor of an apartment building on Heiliggrabgasse. After a fire engine from the professional fire department had been dispatched, further callers reported flames coming from the apartment and a smoke-filled stairwell. When it became clear that several people were trapped in their apartments, the emergency response code was immediately upgraded to "fire with rescue" and additional emergency personnel were alerted.

At the scene, people were seen at windows on the floor above the apartment where the fire was burning, from which thick smoke was billowing. With several teams wearing breathing apparatus, the fire department rescued one person from a smoke-filled apartment and began fighting the fire. Several apartments had to be broken into to search for people who might be trapped. Other residents of the building were looked after by the fire department and rescue services in smoke-free apartments.

Fortunately, no one was in the apartment where a room was on fire. The fire was extinguished after 30 minutes.

The rescue service was on site with several ambulances, an emergency doctor, and the health section management (senior emergency doctor and organizational manager). One person was taken to hospital with smoke inhalation, and four others were slightly injured.

Due to the heavy smoke, extensive ventilation and extinguishing work had to be carried out. The apartment is uninhabitable after the fire. The cause of the fire is being investigated by the police.

In addition to the city's volunteer fire department, which assisted with the rescue of people on site, the Bretzenheim and Marienborn volunteer fire departments manned Fire Station 1.

This operation shows how important it is to keep the apartment door closed when the stairwell is filled with smoke, to give the exact location when calling the emergency number, and to make yourself visible at the window. This enabled the fire department to reach all endangered persons within a very short time.

Head of operations: Senior Fire Chief Holger Hagen
Vehicles BF/FF: 10/2
Personnel BF/FF: 25/14