A fire in the basement of the current construction site "Hildegardis residential quarter" called a large contingent of rescue workers to the scene at noon today. A total of ten people were injured in the fire.

Construction site employees called the emergency services at around 12:00 noon and reported a basement fire. When the first firefighters arrived, thick smoke was billowing from the entrance area and the numerous windows of the 6-story shell of an apartment building. On site, employees reported that two colleagues were still working in the basement when the fire broke out. These two colleagues have been missing ever since.
During the initial assessment of the situation, three construction workers were also spotted on an unfinished balcony on the sixth floor. Their escape route through the stairwell was cut off by the smoke from the fire, and they had to flee to the top floor.
While three teams wearing breathing apparatus advanced into the basement to fight the fire and rescue people, another team went to the upper floor to rescue those trapped there. Due to earthworks, it was not possible to set up the turntable ladder in front of the building shell. The three people trapped inside were guided through the smoke-filled building to safety using fire escape hoods.

The basement extended over three levels beneath the residential building, which were meticulously searched for people by the fire department. Fortunately, the two missing colleagues were found on the first basement landing and led outside. They had inhaled a lot of smoke and were handed over to the emergency medical services for first aid.
Five construction workers were able to escape from the residential building on their own. However, they also had to be treated by the emergency services for smoke inhalation.

While the people were being rescued, a team extinguished the fire. The fire had broken out for reasons still unknown in a bundle of electrical cables and had spread to a high-voltage distributor and insulation material. The burning polystyrene panels produced a huge amount of smoke, which spread unhindered throughout the building.

After the rescue operation and firefighting were completed, the fire department used high-performance fans to clear the smoke from all floors of the building. The last emergency personnel left the scene at around 2:45 p.m.

The professional fire department units were supported by the Bretzenheim and Hechtsheim volunteer fire departments; the emergency services secured the scene and provided care for the patients with the help of all the aid organizations under the direction of the health section management, consisting of the senior emergency physician and the organizational manager. 
In order to have sufficient personnel available for simultaneous operations, the professional fire department stations were manned by members of the Hechtsheim and Drais volunteer fire departments and additional professional fire department personnel.

The criminal investigation department has launched an investigation into the cause of the fire.

The fire department is unable to comment on the extent of the damage.

Head of operations: Fire Department Chief Michael Weitzel
Vehicles BF/FF: 12/5
Personnel BF/FF: 34/22

The Mainz fire department was called to a fallen tree on the BAB 643 between the Mainz-Gonsenheim junction and the Mainz interchange in the direction of Bingen. When the fire department arrived, the situation was confirmed. A tree approximately 10 meters long had been blown over by strong winds and was lying across the hard shoulder and the right lane. The highway police were already on site and had secured the danger zone.

The Mainz fire department cut up the tree with a chainsaw and deposited the tree parts in the grass verge next to the highway. The fire department's operation was completed after about 15 minutes, so that the right lane could be reopened by the highway police after a short time.
During the operation, there was a traffic jam in the direction of Bingen.

Head of operations: Fire Inspector Markus Ketelaer Fire department
vehicles: 1 command vehicle, 1 rescue fire engine
Fire department personnel: 8
Image material: Image rights belong to the Mainz city administration.

This Thursday morning, storm Ignatz caused an increased number of calls to the Mainz control center. By midday, the control center had alerted emergency services to over 50 storm-related incidents, 28 of which were in the Mainz city area. The incidents involved fallen trees, torn-off roof sections, and loose facade parts. Fortunately, no one was injured during these operations. There was also no significant property damage in the Mainz city area. The Mainz professional fire department was supported by volunteer fire departments from Bretzenheim, Drais, Ebersheim, and Hechtsheim.

During the storm, the contents of a garbage truck caught fire on Industriestraße for reasons that are still unclear. The fire caused the vehicle's opening mechanism hydraulics to fail, meaning that the vehicle could not be unloaded on site. As the compressed waste inside the vehicle kept reigniting, the Mainz fire department extinguished the fire to such an extent that the vehicle could be driven to the company's workshop under the supervision of the fire department. There, the company dismantled the tailgate, unloaded the vehicle, and the local fire department was finally able to extinguish the fire.      

Head of operations: Senior Fire Chief Holger Hagen