On Thursday morning at 7:22 a.m., the Mainz fire department control center received an emergency call reporting that a fire was visible on a wind turbine in the area between Ebersheim and Zornheim. As the exact location was unclear, firefighters from the Mainz fire department and the Nieder-Olm municipal association were alerted.

As a fire on a wind turbine involves particular risks, information about the turbine and its operator was obtained while en route.

When the fire department arrived, a flickering light could be seen on the turbine, but no smoke was visible. With the aid of binoculars, a wind gauge could be seen on the rear of the nacelle, behind which a glow of light was visible. The movement of the wind gauge interrupted the glow of light, which could be perceived from a distance as a flickering light. The cause of the glow could not be determined with certainty at first.
The incident commander contacted the operator of the plant to rule out any possible danger and to find out the reasons for the "flickering light." The operator was able to provide useful information based on the system number and contacted the manufacturer of the wind turbine. After consulting with the system manufacturer, the latter informed them that maintenance of the systems in the wind farm was scheduled for that day and that the service technicians were expected to arrive shortly.

After a few minutes, technicians from the manufacturer arrived at the scene and were able to clarify the situation. The wind turbine's anemometer is equipped with a device heater, similar to a heat lamp, which prevents the anemometer from freezing. At the time of the call-out, the temperature was below zero degrees, so the system was operating as intended. There was no danger.

As the emergency call was made at dawn, the flickering light of the heat lamp could easily have been interpreted as a fire.

The volunteer fire departments from Nieder-Olm, Zornheim, and Mainz-Ebersheim were on the scene, along with the Mainz professional fire department, with a total of eight vehicles. The police supported the operation with a patrol car.

Head of operations: Fire Chief René Adler Mainz Fire Department
(BF/FF) vehicles: 1 command vehicle, 1 rescue firefighting vehicle, 1 aerial ladder platform / 1 rescue firefighting vehicle
BF/FF personnel: 10 professional fire department officers / 8 Mainz-Ebersheim volunteer firefighters

Due to storm Sabine, the fire department control center, which is responsible for the Mainz-Bingen and Alzey-Worms districts in addition to the Mainz city area, experienced an increase in the number of calls compared to the "normal" weekend workload.
Between February 9, 2020, at 3:00 p.m. and February 10, 2020, at 11:00 a.m., 13 storm-related incidents were recorded in the Mainz city area, 25 in the Mainz-Bingen district, and 43 in the Alzey-Worms district.

Most of the operations involved technical assistance.

"Sabine" will continue to keep the Mainz fire department's control center busy.
The German Weather Service continues to warn of the following dangers:

Mainz-Bingen district and city of Mainz
from February 10, 11:37 a.m
. to February 10, 12:30 p.m
. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS

from February 9, 5:00 p.m.
to February 11, 6:00 p.m.
GUSTY WINDS
Gusty winds with speeds between 65 km/h (18 m/s, 35 kn, Bft 8) and 85 km/h (24 m/s, 47 kn, Bft 9) will occur, initially from the southwest and later from the west. In exposed locations, severe squalls of up to 100 km/h (28 m/s, 55 kn, Bft 10) are to be expected.

Source: Warning data: © DWD 

Storm Sabine, which swept across Germany from Sunday, February 9, to the early hours of Tuesday, February 11, 2020, also kept the fire department busy in Mainz.

During this period, the Mainz fire department responded to a total of around 130 calls. Of these, 14 were "security measures" related to the storm on February 9, 2020, and a total of 24 calls between Monday and Tuesday at 1:00 p.m. The remaining calls were "normal" incidents such as fire alarms, general assistance, and animal rescue operations.

As particularly strong gusts of wind occurred again on Monday between 3:30 p.m. and 4:45 p.m., resulting in a backlog of calls, and fire alarms were also received at the fire department control center, Fire Station 1 of the professional fire department in Bretzenheim was manned by the Mainz-Bretzenheim volunteer fire department in order to have additional personnel and vehicles available for further operations. At times, all personnel from both professional fire stations and the Bretzenheim volunteer fire department were on duty. The calls were mainly due to fallen trees, fallen branches, and fallen construction fences and signs.

Overall, Mainz got off "lightly" from the fire department's point of view. There was no significant property damage. As far as the fire department was involved in the operations, there were no injuries.

Head of operations: Fire Department Chief Lothar Harf
Vehicles BF/FF: BF 2 HLF 20, 2 DLA 23/12, 2 ELW 1, 1 KLAF, 1 MZF 1 FF: 1 HLF 20, 1 TLF 16/25-TH
Personnel BF/FF: up to 55 firefighters and fire department personnel at times

Shortly before 1:30 p.m. today, the Mainz Fire Department was called to Hattenbergstraße to deal with a truck that had become entangled in overhead power lines.

A truck had initially become entangled in the overhead tram line at the intersection of Hattenbergstraße and Mombacher Straße with its loading crane. In doing so, it tore the overhead line out of its anchoring over a length of approximately 200 meters, leaving it partially lying on the road. However, the driver continued for a few more meters until he collided with a railway bridge. The force of the impact lifted the front of the vehicle and pushed it against the underside of the bridge. The cab was severely damaged. The driver was responsive during the rescue operation.

However, efforts to rescue the injured driver could not begin until the Mainzer Mobilität traffic supervisor had confirmed on site that the overhead line was de-energized. If the overhead line had still been live, the tires would not have posed a danger to the driver, but they would have posed a danger to the rescuers.

Working together with emergency medical services, the driver was carefully freed from his predicament and then transported to a hospital in Mainz under the supervision of an emergency physician.

The fire department’s response and the resulting road closure caused traffic disruptions. Due to the downed overhead line, there are service disruptions in the tram system. The Mainz Fire Department expressly emphasizes, for a very good reason, that barriers at incident sites serve a purpose and must be respected.

The police have launched an investigation into the cause of the accident.

In addition to the fire department, the police were on the scene with several patrol cars, the federal police with one patrol car, and the rescue service with one ambulance and one emergency doctor vehicle.

Head of operations: Fire Chief Christoph Berghäuser
BF/FF vehicles: 2 command vehicles, 1 rescue fire engine, 1 swap body vehicle with roll-off container Technical assistance
BF/FF personnel: 12
Image material: Image rights belong to the Mainz city administration

On Thursday afternoon, the Mainz Fire Department was called to a traffic accident involving a car and a tram on Geschwister-Scholl-Straße in Mainz's Oberstadt district.

When the fire department arrived at the scene, a deformed small car was standing off the road, having previously collided with a tram. No statement can be made about the exact circumstances of the accident. The police have launched an investigation.

The occupants of the small car had already received first aid from the emergency services. The police took care of the passengers and the driver of the tram. At the same time, they secured the scene of the accident. Fortunately, the passengers and the driver were uninjured in the collision and escaped with a scare.

As the driver's side of the small car had been severely deformed in the collision, it was opened up extensively using hydraulic rescue equipment from the fire department in consultation with the emergency doctor who had arrived at the scene. The driver was then rescued from the vehicle with the help of the emergency services using a rescue board.

The rescue operation on the passenger side was not as complicated and could be initiated at the same time. The doors could be opened by hand and the opening created was sufficient to gently rescue the passenger with the assistance of the emergency services. Both occupants were taken to hospitals in Mainz for further treatment.

The traffic accident and the onset of snowfall caused traffic disruptions in the upper town area.

No information is currently available on the extent of the damage. In addition to the Mainz fire department, the following were also on the scene: the police with several patrol cars, the emergency services with three ambulances and an emergency doctor's vehicle.

Head of operations: Fire Chief Sebastian Steigerwald
BF/FF vehicles: 1 command vehicle, 2 rescue fire engines, 1 turntable ladder
BF/FF personnel: 16

On Friday morning (around 6:40 a.m.), the Mainz Fire Department was called to a traffic accident involving three cars. At the intersection of Kurmainzstraße and Katzenberg, three cars were involved in a rear-end collision due to very slippery road conditions. All airbags in one vehicle had deployed and the driver complained of pain. Therefore, in addition to the emergency medical services and the police, the fire department was also alerted.

The fire department was the first to arrive at the scene and provided initial medical care to those involved. One person was found to have no injuries. Two people had to be handed over to the emergency medical services due to the nature of the accident. Both women were later transported to hospitals for further examination of their injuries.

The fire department assisted the rescue services and closed the intersection to traffic. The temporary
closure of the intersection to and from Mainz-Drais caused minor traffic disruptions.

No information is currently available on the extent of the damage.

Head of operations: Fire Chief Rüdiger Zeuner-Christ Fire department
vehicles: 1 command vehicle, 3 rescue fire engines (2xBF/1xFF) Fire department
personnel: 14/6