Berlin fire brigade

Berlin fire brigade
State level	country
position	fire Department
Supervisory authority	Senate Department for Home Affairs and Sport
founding	February 01, 1851
Headquarters	Berlin
State fire director	Karsten Homrighausen
Servants	4,479 (December 31, 2019; of which around 4,082 in the field service, 396 in administration and 513 candidates or trainees.)
Web presence	www.berliner-feuerwehr.de

The Prenzlauer Berg fire station is the oldest professional fire station in Germany still in operation

The Berlin Fire Brigade is the fire brigade of the German capital Berlin . It was founded in 1851 by Ludwig Scabell , making it the oldest professional fire service in Germany . With around 4,500 employees and 35 professional fire stations , it is also the largest professional fire service in Germany.

The Berlin professional fire brigade is supported by 58 volunteer fire brigades with around 1500 active volunteer members.

The state authority, which is subordinate to the Senate Department for Internal Affairs and Sport , has been headed by State Fire Director Karsten Homrighausen since August 1, 2018 .

history

Industrialization and the early days (1851–1899)

Postage stamp for the 125th anniversary in 1976

When Ludwig Scabell received the order to set up the first German professional fire brigade from the Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm IV in 1851 and was appointed royal fire director, Berlin was under the impression of a series of devastating major fires. The city grew rapidly, the buildings became increasingly narrow and people lived close together. The training and technology of the previous fire brigades were inadequate, and the resources could no longer keep up with the size of the building. Therefore, the King of Prussia made the decision to commission Scabell to found a professional fire brigade and to ensure its training and equipment. Almost 1,000 men were hired and trained within a very short time. At the same time, the construction of professional fire stations began.

In the same year, the city of Berlin also got the world's first electrical fire alarm network. It was installed by Siemens & Halske and connected the headquarters in the city bailiff on Molkenmarkt with 24 fire stations and all police stations. The first new fire station was opened in 1854, and two years later a water supply network with 1,520 hydrants went into operation in Berlin  .

Scabell reached retirement age in 1875 and was succeeded by Gustav Witte . In 1879, together with the engineer and manufacturer Greiner, he received the German patent for the world's first turntable ladder . The Berlin fire brigade put their first turntable ladder, built by the BAMAG company, into service at the main station in 1882 .

Turn of the century, World War I and Weimar Republic (1900–1932)

In 1901 the international fire protection exhibition took place in Berlin to mark the 50th anniversary of the professional fire brigade. In 1906, a gas syringe was put into service at the Berlin-Grunewald fire station as the first petrol car fire engine in Germany. During the First World War from 1914 to 1918, the Berlin fire brigade handed 700 officers over to the army, where some of the drafted firefighters were deployed in the newly created flamethrower regiments.

Period of National Socialism (1933–1945)

Berlin fire brigade in August 1945.

On December 15, 1933, the designation "fire-fighting police" was introduced for the Prussian professional fire services. The fire brigades throughout the German Reich were subordinated to the Ordnungspolizei in 1938 and were henceforth called the " Fire Police ". In the November pogroms of 1938 , the NS-led fire police did not intervene, with a few exceptions, when the synagogues were set on fire.

One city - two fire departments (1946–1990)

Kreuzberg fire station

After the end of the war, six of the former 38 professional fire brigade guards were unusable, and of the 51 volunteer fire brigade guards, three were totally destroyed and twelve were partially destroyed. On November 21, 1948, the Berlin fire brigade was divided into two separate authorities, East and West. In both halves of the city, the first post-war new building guards were built in the 1950s, technology and training continued to develop separately. It was not until 1952 that the East Berlin fire brigade was incorporated into the People's Police as "Organ F". The East Berlin fire brigade was given a "west turntable ladder " to protect the Stalin-Allee (now Karl-Marx-Allee) built in the 1950s . The DL 52 manufactured by Metz with a rescue height of over 50 meters already had a car that could be used as a lift. In the days after the Wall was built in 1961, the West Berlin fire brigade had to open their jumping sheets again and again because people jumped out of buildings on the demarcation line and into freedom.

In 1969 the West Berlin Rescue Office was incorporated into the fire brigade. Since then, the (West) Berlin fire brigade has also been responsible for the rescue service . In East Berlin, the rescue service was performed independently of the fire brigade by the emergency services until reunification. Since the beginning of the 1980s, the West Berlin fire brigade had to deal with operations in May riots in Berlin-Kreuzberg . On the night of May 1, 1987, an LF 16 at the Berlin-Kreuzberg fire station was completely destroyed.

Development since the turning point

" Kurt-Werner Seidel " fireboat of the Berlin fire brigade

On October 3, 1990, the day of German reunification , the East Berlin fire brigade (see: Fire Brigade in the GDR ) was handed over to state fire director Wolfgang Scholz. At that time, the number of staff in the professional fire brigade was 3,788 in West Berlin and 1,112 in East Berlin.

In mid-1992 Albrecht Broemme was appointed regional fire director of Berlin.

Award ceremony Fire Brigade Olympiad 1993 Fire- fighting discipline Volunteer fire brigades : from left Berlin , Beselich-Obertiefenbach and the Czech Republic

From July 11th to 17th, 1993, the Xth International Fire Brigade Competition of the CTIF (Fire Brigade Olympics ) took place in the Wilmersdorf Stadium in Berlin  . The program included traditional international fire service competitions, international fire service sports competitions and international youth fire service competitions. The Berlin Fire Department delivered in the fall of 1993 in the fire station Wiesbaden with the volunteer fire department Beselich-Obertiefenbach a competition in hook ladder climbing for Frank Elstner -Show But hello the television station RTL .

Due to the higher volume of traffic and the numerous new traffic calming measures in the districts, a new vehicle concept was tested in 1993/94: The fire fighting vehicle 16/12, "City-LHF" for short, was 2.2 m shorter, 20 cm narrower and therefore more manoeuvrable than the conventional LHF 16 of the Berlin fire brigade. After the successful testing phase, 41 vehicles of this type were purchased from 1994 to 1997.

On New Year's Eve 2000 there was a total failure of the IT control center including the fallback level. For several hours it was not possible to process emergency calls in an orderly manner; as a makeshift emergency vehicles were sent on patrols. There was only a marginal connection with the so-called Year 2000 problem . The affected operational control system FIS was replaced by the more modern IGNIS in 2000 and by its successor IGNIS-Plus in 2017.

After the state fire director Broemme was appointed president of the Technical Relief Organization in May 2006, his deputy Wilfried Gräfling was initially acting head of the authority and finally in November 2006 the new state fire director of Berlin.

Gräfling left the fire service at the end of July 2018 and retired. His successor was Karsten Homrighausen on August 1, 2018.

In 2018, under the slogan “Berlin is on fire”, the fire brigade protested in front of the Red City Hall and political discussions in the Senate and House of Representatives . The reasons are identified as the increasing number of deployments, inadequate equipment with vehicles and materials and the shortage of staff - before the fall of the Wall, West Berlin alone had more fire fighters than the entire city in 2018.

Head of the Berlin Fire Brigade

Term of office	Surname	Official title
1851-1875	Ludwig Scabell	Fire director
1875-1887	Gustav Witte	Fire director
1887-1893	Alexander Stude	Fire director
1893-1905	Erich Giersberg	Fire director
1905-1922	Maximilian Reichel	Chief Fire Director
1922-1933	Walther Gempp	Chief Fire Director
1933-1943	Gustav Wagner	Major general
1943-1945	Walter Goldbach	Major general
1945-1948	Karl after work	Chief Fire Director (east part until 1952)
1949-1957	Ludwig Wissell	Chief Fire Director (West)
1952-1963	Ernst Ettrich	Fire Brigade Colonel (East)
1957-1968	Friedrich Kaufhold	Chief Fire Director (West)
1963-1970	Rudi Mösch	Fire Brigade Colonel (East)
1968-1970	Heinz Hoene	State Fire Director (West)
1970-1990	Horst Meier	Fire Director (East)
1970-1988	Kurt-Werner Seidel	State Fire Director (West)
1989-1992	Wolfgang Scholz	State fire director
1990	Manfred Schäfer	Chief Fire Council (East)
1992-2006	Albrecht Broemme	State fire director
2006-2018	Wilfried Graefling	State fire director
since 2018	Karsten Homrighausen	State fire director

Calls

Bet numbers

NEF of the Berlin fire brigade in old design

Use statistics

Use statistics	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018
Fires	14,244 (5.40%)	7,247 (2.82%)	8,233 (3.02%)	7,718 (2.34%)	7,019 (2.41%)	7,610 (2.78%)	8,114 (2.66%)	8,316 (2.66%)	6,860 (2.16%)	7,330 (2.21%)	6,456 (1.80%)	7,165 (1.83%)	7,230 (1.80%)	6,909 (1.72%)	7,570 (1.63%)
Assistance	21,617 (8.20%)	19,621 (7.63%)	28,270 (10.37%)	31,226 (9.46%)	23,279 (8.01%)	17,166 (6.27%)	17,674 (5.79%)	16,615 (5.32%)	17,693 (5.58%)	19,194 (5.80%)	19,949 (5.55%)	20,794 (5.31%)	19,040 (4.75%)	22,426 (5.59%)	13,925 (3.00%)
Ambulance service	227,875 (86.40%)	230,389 (89.56%)	236,138 (86.61%)	291,205 (88.20%)	260,415 (89.58%)	248,957 (90.95%)	279,599 (91.56%)	287,506 (92.02%)	292,464 (92.25%)	304,483 (91.99%)	333,199 (92.66%)	363,599 (92.86%)	374,942 (93.45%)	371,915 (92.68%)	390,409 (94.14%)
Total (excluding false alarms and provision)	263,736	257.257	272,641	330.149	290.713	273,733	305.387	312,437	317.017	331.007	359,604	391,558	401.212	401,250	411.904

Special missions

DLK of the Berlin fire brigade in action

• September 26, 1908 - Two elevated trains collide at Gleisdreieck - 18 dead
• 27./28. February 1933 - Reichstag fire
• May 21, 1980 - Partial collapse of the Congress Hall
• 1983 - Attack on the Maison de France
• April 5, 1986 - Attack on the La Belle discotheque - three dead
• 16.-21. December 1989 - The fire in a building with three hotel guesthouses on the corner of Kurfürstendamm and the corner of Wielandstrasse spreads into the largest hotel fire in German post-war history - eight deaths
• 1989/90 - Collapse of a video wall at the New Year's Eve celebration at the Brandenburg Gate
• 26./27. October 1994 - Fire on the roof of the German Cathedral
• August 4, 1998 - Severe gas explosion in Lepsiusstrasse
• July 8, 2000 - Fire in the Deutsche Oper underground station . 350 people have to be evacuated through a tunnel.
• July 10, 2002 - Hurricane “Anita” - worst storm for 30 years - 7 dead and 39 injured
• 18./19. January 2007 - hurricane "Kyrill" - u. a. Damage to the facade of the new main station - a total of 1001 missions
• December 19, 2016 - attack on Breitscheidplatz - truck rushes into the Christmas market - 12 dead and 53 injured
• 19./20. February 2019 - 36 hour blackout in the southeast of Berlin, evacuation of two hospitals, people from care facilities and from elevators. Maintaining emergency care through mobile fire stations in cooperation with the police, Red Cross and civil protection.
• 10/11 May 2020 - Several warehouses are on fire in Tegel, the Berlin fire brigade was in action with over 300 people. The fire was only under control after about 19 hours, after 21 hours the last forces could move away.

organization

NAW of the Berlin fire brigade in old design

According to Section 3 of the Fire Brigade Act (FwG) Berlin, the Berlin fire brigade is responsible for fire fighting, hazard prevention, preventive fire protection, disaster control and rescue services . In the area of ​​responsibility of the Berlin fire brigade, there is also the Tegel airport fire brigade , three plant fire departments and three company fire departments . These private fire brigades are in close professional contact with the Berlin fire brigade and, with the exception of the company fire brigades, are alerted for special operations. The Berlin Fire Brigade Museum in Berlin-Tegel shows the history of the Berlin fire brigade in an exhibition. The basic and advanced training is concentrated in the Berlin Fire Brigade and Rescue Service Academy in Reinickendorf.

The volunteer fire brigades of the Berlin Fire Brigade are members of the Berlin State Fire Brigade Association (LFV). LFV Berlin is a member of the German Fire Brigade Association (DFV) based in Berlin .

structure

The Berlin fire brigade has a total of 35 professional fire stations, 18 NEF stations, 58 volunteer fire departments and 47 youth fire departments .

The urban parts of Berlin with a high population density are covered by professional fire stations that are manned around the clock. Your emergency services work in 12-hour shifts. Some professional fire stations also have volunteer fire brigades (type B) in-house who can provide support if necessary. In the outskirts, the volunteer fire brigades (type A) have their own deployment areas, in which they have primary responsibility for operations.

The vehicles, technical equipment and protective clothing of the volunteer fire brigades correspond to those of the professional fire brigade.

Authority structure of the Berlin fire brigade:

• Authority management (staff, internal auditing, projects, occupational health and safety)
• Directorate North ( Lichtenberg , Marzahn-Hellersdorf , Pankow , Reinickendorf - 10 professional fire brigades and 27 volunteer fire brigades)
• Directorate South ( Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg , Neukölln , Tempelhof-Schöneberg , Treptow-Köpenick - 10 professional fire stations and 20 volunteer fire departments)
• West Directorate ( Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf , Mitte , Spandau , Steglitz-Zehlendorf - 14 professional fire stations and 11 volunteer fire departments)
• Service units (control center, finance and internal services, education and training, information technology, vehicles and equipment).

As part of the presentation of the 2020 project , it was announced on November 18, 2019 that the Berlin fire brigade will be restructured in the first half of 2020 and that the directorate model that has been in use for 20 years will be abolished. The previous directorates and service units are then to be replaced by new departments.

Fire stations

guard	Guard type	Guard number	Directorate	Personnel strength (day / night)	address
Buckow Fire Station	BF	5200	south	11/9	Johannisthaler chaussee 222 12351 Berlin
Fire station Charlottenburg-Nord		3600	west	15/13	Nikolaus-Groß-Weg 2 13627 Berlin
Friedrichshain fire station		1200	south	12/10	Rüdersdorfer Str. 56 10243 Berlin
Hellersdorf fire station		6200	North	11/9	Kummerower Ring 80 12621 Berlin
Hermsdorf fire station		2300	North	10/10	Heinsestr. 24 13467 Berlin
Karlshorst fire station		6500	North	10/8	Dönhoffstrasse 31 10318 Berlin
Fire station Köpenick		5400	south	17/17	Grünauer Str. 140 12557 Berlin
Kreuzberg fire station		1600	south	10/10	Wiener Str. 64 10999 Berlin
Lichtenberg fire station		6400	North	11/9	Josef-Orlopp-Strasse 69 10365 Berlin
Feuerwache Lichterfelde		4600	west	10/10	Goethestr. 7th 12207 Berlin
Marienfelde fire station		4700	south	12/10	Wilhelm-von-Siemens-Str. 15th 12277 Berlin
Marzahn fire station		6100	North	21/19	Markische Allee 181 12681 Berlin
Fire station Moabit		1400	west	10/10	Jagowstrasse 31-34 10555 Berlin
Neukölln fire station		5100	south	17/17	Kirchhofstrasse 20th 12051 Berlin
Pankow fire station		2600	North	18/16	Pasewalker Str. 120 13127 Berlin
Prenzlauer Berg fire station		1300	North	18/16	Oderberger Str. 24 10435 Berlin
Fire station tendril		3500	west	12/12	Rankestr. 10 10789 Berlin
Schillerpark fire station		2100	west	17/15	Edinburgerstrasse 7th 13349 Berlin
Schöneberg fire station		4400	south	11/9	Feurigstr. 58 10827 Berlin
Spandau-Nord fire station		3100	west	18/18	Triftstrasse 8-9 13585 Berlin
Fire station Spandau-Süd		3200	west	21/19	Betckestr. 13 13595 Berlin
Steglitz fire station		4200	west	10/10	Südendstrasse 18 A 12169 Berlin
Suarez Fire Station		3300	west	12/10	Suarezstrasse 9 14057 Berlin
Tegel fire station		2400	North	11/9	Berliner Str. 16 13507 Berlin
Tempelhof fire station		4300	south	18/16	Borussiastr. 16-17 12103 Berlin
Tiergarten fire station		1700	west	10/10	Elisabeth-Abegg-Str. 2 10557 Berlin
Treptow fire station		5300	south	22/22	Groß-Berliner Damm 18 12487 Berlin
Urban fire station		1500	south	14/14	Wilmsstrasse 19th 10961 Berlin
Wannsee fire station		4500	west	10/8	Kronprinzessinnenweg 20 14109 Berlin
Fire station Wedding		2500	west	10/10	Reinickendorfer Str. 15 a 13347 Berlin
Weissensee fire station		6300	North	20/20	Parkstrasse 38-39 13086 Berlin
Wilmersdorf fire station		3400	west	10/8	Gasteiner Str. 19-20 10717 Berlin
Wittenau fire station		2200	North	13/13	Roedernallee 55 13437 Berlin
Zehlendorf fire station		4100	west	19/19	Charlottenburger Str. 10-12 14169 Berlin
Teaching rescue station center		1100	west	20/18	Voltairestrasse 2 10179 Berlin
Technical Service II		6139	ZS FG *	11/11	Markische Allee 181 12681 Berlin
Technical service I		3639	ZS FG *	21/21	Nikolaus-Groß-Weg 2 13627 Berlin
Telecommunication service		3649	ZS IT **	6/6	Nikolaus-Groß-Weg 2 13627 Berlin
Volunteer fire brigade center	B.	1110	west		Lines 128 - 129 10115 Berlin
Friedrichshain volunteer fire brigade	B.	1201	south		Rüdersdorfer Strasse 57 10243 Berlin
Adlershof volunteer fire brigade	A.	5310	south		Selchowstrasse 3-4 12489 Berlin
Altglienicke volunteer fire brigade	A + B	5330	south		Semmelweisstrasse 87 12524 Berlin
Biesdorf volunteer fire department	B.	6120	North		Alt-Biesdorf 58 12683 Berlin
Blankenburg volunteer fire department	A.	6360	North		Alt-Blankenburg 9 13129 Berlin
Blankenfelde volunteer fire department	A.	2630	North		Main street 14th 13159 Berlin
Bohnsdorf volunteer fire department	A.	5320	south		Waltersdorfer Str. 107 12526 Berlin
Volunteer Fire Department book	A.	2710	North		Pölnitzweg 3 13125 Berlin
Buchholz volunteer fire department	A.	2620	North		Gravensteinstrasse 10 13127 Berlin
Charlottenburg-Nord volunteer fire department	B.	3601	west		Paulsternstrasse 34 13629 Berlin
Falkenberg Volunteer Fire Brigade	B.	6320	North		Hausvaterweg 16 13057 Berlin
Voluntary fire brigade Friedrichshagen	A.	5410	south		Müggelseedamm 178 12587 Berlin
Volunteer fire brigade Frohnau	A.	2320	North		Remstaler Str. 9 13465 Berlin
Gatow volunteer fire department	A.	3210	west		Gatower Str. 333 14089 Berlin
Grünau volunteer fire department	A.	5470	south		Schlierseestr. 10 12527 Berlin
Heiligensee volunteer fire department	A.	2410	North		Alt-Heiligensee 68 13503 Berlin
Heinersdorf volunteer fire department	A.	6370	North		Romain-Rolland-Str. 105-107 13089 Berlin
Hellersdorf volunteer fire department	A.	6230	North		Hellersdorfer Strasse 147 12619 Berlin
Hermsdorf volunteer fire department	B.	2301	North		Heinsestr. 24 13467 Berlin
Hohenschönhausen volunteer fire department	A.	6310	North		Ferdinand-Schultze-Str. 128 13055 Berlin
Karlshorst volunteer fire department	A.	6501	North		Dönhoffstrasse 31 10318 Berlin
Karow Volunteer Fire Brigade	A.	2720	North		Alt-Karow 10/11 13125 Berlin
Kaulsdorf volunteer fire department	A.	6210	North		Mädewalder Weg 21 12621 Berlin
Kladow volunteer fire department	A.	3220	west		Kladower Damm 367 14089 Berlin
Voluntary fire brigade Köpenick	B.	5401	south		Grünauer Str. 140 12557 Berlin
Kreuzberg volunteer fire department	B.	1601	south		Wiener Strasse 64 10999 Berlin
Lichtenberg volunteer fire department	B.	6401	North		Josef-Orlopp-Strasse 69 10365 Berlin
Lichtenrade volunteer fire department	A.	4710	south		In Domstift 22 12309 Berlin
Lichterfelde volunteer fire department	B.	4601	west		Goethestrasse 7 12207 Berlin
Mahlsdorf volunteer fire department	A.	6220	North		Donizettistr. 4th 12623 Berlin
Marienfelde volunteer fire department	B.	4701	south		Wilhelm-von-Siemens-Str. 15th 12277 Berlin
Marzahn Volunteer Fire Brigade	B.	6110	North		Blenheimstrasse 67 12685 Berlin
Moabit Volunteer Fire Brigade	B.	1401	west		Jagowstrasse 31-34 10555 Berlin
Müggelheim volunteer fire department	A.	5440	south		Krampenburger Weg 1 12559 Berlin
Neukölln volunteer fire brigade	B.	5101	south		Kirchhofstrasse 20th 12051 Berlin
Niederönhausen volunteer fire department	A.	2610	North		Blankenburger Str. 19 13156 Berlin
Oberschöneweide volunteer fire department	A.	5340	south		Siemensstrasse 22nd 12459 Berlin
Pankow volunteer fire department	A.	2650	North		Stiftsweg 1 a 13187 Berlin
Prenzlauer Berg volunteer fire department	B.	1310	North		Schieritzstrasse 24 10409 Berlin
Rauchfangswerder volunteer fire department	A.	5460	south		Schmöckwitzer Damm 60 12527 Berlin
Rudow volunteer fire department	A.	5210	south		Rudow 67 12355 Berlin
Schmöckwitz volunteer fire department	A.	5450	south		Eagle frame 786 12527 Berlin
Schöneberg volunteer fire brigade	B.	4401	south		Feurigstr. 58 10827 Berlin
Spandau-Nord volunteer fire department	B.	3101	west		Triftstrasse 8-9 13585 Berlin
Staaken volunteer fire brigade	A.	3110	west		Hackbuschstrasse 65 13591 Berlin
Suarez Volunteer Fire Brigade	B.	3301	west		Suarezstrasse 9 14057 Berlin
Tegel volunteer fire brigade	B.	2401	North		Berliner Str. 16 13507 Berlin
Tegelort volunteer fire brigade	A.	2420	North		Friederikestr. 19th 13505 Berlin
Treptow volunteer fire department	B.	5301	south		Groß-Berliner Damm 18 12487 Berlin
Urban volunteer fire department	B.	1501	south		Wilmsstrasse 19th 10961 Berlin
Wartenberg-Malchow volunteer fire department	A + B	6330	North		Dorfstrasse 4 13059 Berlin
Wedding volunteer fire brigade	B.	2501	west		Reinickendorfer Str. 15 a 13347 Berlin
Weißensee volunteer fire department	B.	6301	North		Parkstrasse 38-39 13086 Berlin
Wilhelmshagen volunteer fire brigade	A.	5430	south		Frankenbergstrasse 23 12589 Berlin
Wilhelmsruh volunteer fire brigade	A.	2640	North		Edelweissstrasse 35 13158 Berlin
Wittenau volunteer fire brigade	B.	2201	North		Roedernallee 55 13437 Berlin
Zehlendorf volunteer fire department	B.	4101	west		Charlottenburger Str. 10-12 14169 Berlin

* Central service vehicles and equipment

** Central service information technology

The largest area of ​​the Berlin fire brigade is located on Nikolaus-Groß-Weg in the Charlottenburg-Nord district . In addition to the normal fire station, Technical Service I is also stationed here with various special vehicles. The control center, the central workshop, the clothing store, the IT department with telecommunications service and the offices of the West Department are also located at this location.

• Fire stations of the Berlin fire brigade (selection)
• 

  Fire station Berlin-Neukölln

• 

  Haselhorst base guard (Berlin-Spandau)

• 

  Fire station Oberschöneweide (Berlin-Köpenick)

• 

  Berlin-Kreuzberg fire station

• 

  Fire station Prenzlauer Berg
  oldest working station of a German professional fire brigade

• 

  Fire station Schillerpark (Wedding)
  first Berlin fire station for motor vehicles

budget

The Berlin fire brigade has an annual budget of around 247 million euros, including personnel costs and investments. About 83 percent of the approximately 400,000 missions per year are carried out by the rescue service, five percent by technical assistance and only two percent by fire fighting. There are also around 40,000 explorations and missed missions (around 10%).

Special forces

• Technical service I and II ( setup group , diving group , breathing protection group , environmental protection group, foam group ), stationed at the Charlottenburg-Nord and Marzahn locations
• Telecommunication service for troubleshooting the IT systems outside of the regular office working hours of the IT departments, staffing of an ELW 2 for management support and operation of an emergency drone (stationed at Nikolaus-Groß-Weg at the Central Service Information Technology)
• Height rescue service (stationed at the Marzahn professional fire station)
• Specialist group pyrotechnics (damage representations with or without pyrotechnic means, public relations, prevention and advice; stationed at the Marzahn professional fire station)
• Music train of the Berlin fire brigade e. V.

Equipment and vehicles

TLF 24/40 with special equipment

Fireboat III of the Berlin fire brigade

The Berlin fire brigade has a total of 920 vehicles. These include 194 fire engines (LHF / LF), 42 turntable ladders (DLK), 232 ambulances (RTW) and other rescue vehicles, 42 roll-off containers (AB), 82 trailers and two fire boats .

In addition to the turntable ladders, the Berlin fire brigade also has a telescopic mast vehicle at their disposal. The TM 50 fire brigade telescopic mast from Metz Aerials / WUMAG on a MAN TGA chassis is used for rescuing people and fighting fires at great heights. A working height of up to 50 meters is achieved.

Among other things, to secure the 2.4 km long tunnel Tiergarten Spreebogen (TTS) and the city ​​motorway , the tank tender (TLF) 24/40 with special equipment was purchased. All places in the relay cabin are equipped with breathing apparatus . In addition, fans can be folded out to the side. The TLF 24/40 has a reserve of 4,000 liters of extinguishing water and 400 liters of foam concentrate . The vehicle is also used by area and forest fires used.

Since July 30, 2020, the Berlin fire brigade has been testing four emergency drones that are equipped with thermal imaging cameras to detect sources of fire and embers . In the afternoon of the same day, these were used in real life for the first time in the event of a fire in an attic .

Berlin concept: the fire fighting and rescue vehicle

The fire fighting and rescue vehicle (LHF) is a special vehicle concept of the Berlin fire brigade. These are vehicles that can be used both for fire fighting and for technical assistance. Their load is very similar to that of fire fighting vehicles , but they are shorter and therefore more manoeuvrable.

LHF 16/16

The first LHF was put into service by the Berlin fire brigade in early 1983. Compared to the fire fighting vehicles and tank fire engines that were common at the time , the LHF is more extensively equipped with devices for technical assistance. It was supposed to be an all-round vehicle for fire fighting and assistance, which with a squadron of six can also operate independently.

The fire fighting and rescue vehicle 16/16 has a fire pump with an output of 1,600 l / min at 8 bar, an extinguishing water container with 1,600 l and a permanently installed foam compound container with 400 l extinguishing foam . For technical assistance, the vehicle is equipped with a hydraulic rescue set consisting of rescue scissors, spreader and rescue cylinder with an additional hand pump.

LHF 16/12 City

LHF 16/12 of the Berlin fire brigade in old design

The LHF 16/12 City has been used by the Berlin fire brigade since 1994. Compared to its predecessor, it has shrunk by 2.2 m in length and 20 cm in width, which means better maneuverability in road traffic.

The LHF 16/12 also has a fire pump with an output of 1,600 l / min at 8 bar. The extinguishing water container only contains 1,200 liters of water, the permanently installed foam compound container still contains 100 liters of extinguishing foam . Like its predecessor, the vehicle is equipped with a portable generator and rescue kits for technical assistance. The LHF 16/12 is also available as an all-wheel drive version.

LHF 20/12

Since the beginning of 2007, a new LHF generation has been in use, which is equipped with compressed air foam systems (DLS CAFS).

The LHF 20/12 has a fire pump with an output of 2,000 l / min at 10 bar, 1,200 l of extinguishing water, 100 l of extinguishing foam and a DLS system (CAFS 1000 or 1200). The vehicle is equipped with a hydraulic rescue kit for technical assistance. The vehicle is equipped with an automatic transmission and a reversing camera.

LHF 20/8

The LHF 20/8, which were procured from the economic stimulus package, are among the newest vehicles from Berlin's volunteer fire brigades. This type was only procured for the volunteer departments and not for the professional fire brigade. The LHF 20/8 is based on a Mercedes Atego with all-wheel drive and has an 800-liter water tank (a 1000-liter water tank is installed). The structure comes from Rosenbauer. The crew is 1: 8 . The pumps deliver 2000 liters / min at 10 bar.

LHF 10/5

In 2011, two LHF 10/5 were procured to replace the LHF-K, which were getting on in years. The vehicles are the smallest LHF in Berlin. Like the LHF 20/8, they were only procured for the volunteer fire brigades because the space available did not allow a larger LHF (bridges, fire stations that were too small). However, there is almost the same equipment in the vehicles as in the larger fire engines. A Mercedes-Benz Vario 818D with a body from Rosenbauer (Compactline) was selected as the chassis . The vehicles were stationed in Rauchfangswerder and Wilhelmshagen. The extinguishing water content is 500 liters of water. The vehicle has a TS (10/1000) as a pump .

Ambulance

Ambulance of the Berlin fire brigade in old design

Stroke emergency vehicle of the Berlin fire brigade in the current corporate design (arc tapering from bottom to top and current logo)

The Berlin fire brigade is responsible for the city's rescue service; the vast majority of the missions completed annually are rescue missions. The Berlin fire brigade mainly uses Mercedes-Benz Sprinter vehicles with box bodies as ambulances . This design, in which the case can be detached from the chassis, enables the case or chassis to be replaced separately after an accident or in the event of a technical defect. The entire vehicle is not paralyzed by the workshop visit, but only the damaged part.

In addition, there are ambulances I for patients with highly contagious diseases, the ambulance S for transporting extremely heavy emergency patients and the stroke mobile (STEMO) for stroke patients.

As soon as 90 percent of the ambulances in Berlin are in use, the control center calls the " emergency emergency service " and dispatches fire fighters from fire engines to ambulances. This happened 41 times in 2018, resulting in delayed arrival times.

literature

• Günter Strumpf: The Berlin fire brigade. From the beginning to the present . EFB-Verlagsgesellschaft, 1987, ISBN 3-88776-036-0 .
• Detlef Machmüller: Berlin and its fire departments . Verlag Technik, Berlin / Munich 1992, ISBN 3-341-01065-3 .
• Eckart Lottmann: Berlin Fire Brigade - On the turntable ladder of history . be.bra Verlag, 1996, ISBN 3-930863-20-0 .
• Hans-Jörg Schierz: Berlin fire engines from 1960 to today . Walter Podzun, 1998, ISBN 3-86133-192-6 .
• Lothar Wackermann: The Berlin Fire Brigade: Your organization and development in the divided city from 1945–1980 . 1st edition. 2004, dissertation.de, ISBN 3-89825-776-2 .
• Klaus König: Fire and Flame - Berlin 1993 . Foundation for the Promotion of Fire Brigades Berlin. 1993
• Hans-Jörg Schierz: The modern Berlin fire brigade - vehicles from 1996 to 2011 . Sutton Verlag, 2011, ISBN 978-3-86680-950-5 .
• Detlef Machmüller: The Berlin plant fire brigades 1990–2012 . Sutton Verlag, 2012, ISBN 978-3-86680-984-0 .

See also

List of German cities with a professional fire brigade

Web links

Commons : Firefighting in Berlin  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Berlin fire brigade
• Berlin youth fire brigade
• Photos taken by the photographer Stefan Rasch
• Mission images | FD | Fire department documentation

Coordinates: 52 ° 31 ′ 1.1 ″  N , 13 ° 24 ′ 54.6 ″  E

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Berlin fire brigade in figures 2019 . berliner-feuerwehr.de, accessed on January 30, 2019.
2. ^ ^{A b} Wolfgang Hornung-Arnegg: Fire Department History . Kohlhammer, 4th edition. 1995, ISBN 3-17-013203-2 , p. 61.
3. ↑ As of December 2019: (online at: berliner-feuerwehr.de )
4. ↑ ^{a b} Berlin Fire Brigade in Figures 2019
5. ↑ Dr. Karsten Homrighausen appointed the new regional fire director , The Governing Mayor of Berlin, Senate Chancellery, accessed on July 31, 2018
6. ↑ Eckart Lottmann: Berlin Fire Brigade - On the turntable ladder of history . be.bra, 1996, ISBN 3-930863-20-0 , p. 21.
7. ^ Berlin fire brigade: Founding of the Berlin fire brigade from 1851 to 1945. In: Berliner-Feuerwehr.de. State of Berlin, accessed on February 18, 2019 . 
8. ↑ Wolfgang Hornung-Arnegg: Fire Department History . Kohlhammer, 4th edition. 1995, ISBN 3-17-013203-2 , p. 73.
9. ↑ Eckart Lottmann: Berlin Fire Brigade - On the turntable ladder of history . be.bra, 1996, ISBN 3-930863-20-0 , p. 41.
10. ↑ Wolfgang Hornung-Arnegg: Fire Department History . Kohlhammer, 4th edition. 1995, ISBN 3-17-013203-2 , p. 80.
11. ↑ Wolfgang Hornung-Arnegg: Fire Department History . Kohlhammer, 4th edition. 1995, ISBN 3-17-013203-2 , p. 85.
12. ↑ Eckart Lottmann: Berlin Fire Brigade - On the turntable ladder of history . be.bra, 1996, ISBN 3-930863-20-0 , pp. 68f.
13. ↑ Eckart Lottmann: Berlin Fire Brigade - On the turntable ladder of history . be.bra, 1996, ISBN 3-930863-20-0 , p. 106.
14. ↑ Wolfgang Hornung-Arnegg: Fire Department History . Kohlhammer, 4th edition. 1995, ISBN 3-17-013203-2 , p. 103.
15. ↑ Eckart Lottmann: Berlin Fire Brigade - On the turntable ladder of history . be.bra, 1996, ISBN 3-930863-20-0 , p. 119.
16. ↑ Hans-Jörg Schierz: Berlin fire engines - From 1960 to today . Walter Podzun, 1998, ISBN 3-86133-192-6 , pp. 138f.
17. ↑ Hans-Jörg Schierz: Berlin fire engines - From 1960 to today . Walter Podzun, 1998, ISBN 3-86133-192-6 , pp. 144f.
18. ↑ Eckart Lottmann: Berlin Fire Brigade - On the turntable ladder of history . be.bra, 1996, ISBN 3-930863-20-0 .
19. ^ Franz-Josef Sehr : X. Fire Brigade Olympics 1993 in Berlin . In: Florian Hessen 9/1993 . Munkelt Verlag, Wiesbaden 1993, p. 25-26 . ISSN 0936-5370 .  
20. ↑ Eckart Lottmann: Berlin Fire Brigade - On the turntable ladder of history . be.bra, 1996, ISBN 3-930863-20-0 , p. 155.
21. ^ Computer disaster: The New Year's Eve chaos at the Berlin fire department . In: heise-online, June 16, 2000.
22. ↑ Jürgen Kuri: You went stupid? - Anatomy of a computer meltdown , c't 13/2000, S. et seq 216th
23. ↑ Berlin Fire Brigade: Introduction of IGNIS-Plus . Retrieved April 3, 2018
24. ↑ Dr. Karsten Homrighausen appointed the new regional fire director , The Governing Mayor of Berlin, Senate Chancellery, accessed on July 31, 2018
25. ↑ Berlin House of Representatives , 18th electoral term: Written request from Member of Parliament Burkard Dregger (CDU) dated February 28, 2019 on the subject of emergency rescue service at the Berlin fire brigade. Printed matter 18/18 072 .
26. ↑ ^{a b} “Berlin is on fire” protest The Berlin fire brigade is in a state of emergency . In: Der Tagesspiegel , April 3, 2018.
27. ↑ ^{a b} Senate wants to reduce load peaks in the rescue service . Doctors newspaper , April 25, 2019.
28. ↑ Andreas Kopietz, Alexander Schmalz: Lack of personnel: The Berlin fire brigade is increasingly imposing a state of emergency . In: Berliner Zeitung , February 23, 2018.
29. ↑ Berlin fire brigade: Fire brigade needs help . In: the daily newspaper , October 15, 2018.
30. ↑ In service for over 30 years: "Permanent state of emergency" - firefighter unpacks . In: Berliner Zeitung , May 23, 2018.
31. ↑ without deployment and incorrect use; from the annual reports of the Berlin fire brigade: berliner-feuerwehr.de: annual reports
32. ↑ Annual report 2006 (PDF; 2.6 MB) p. 19
33. ↑ Annual report 2007 (PDF; 2.1 MB) p. 19
34. ↑ Annual report 2008 (PDF; 5.7 MB) p. 7
35. ↑ Annual report 2009 (PDF; 7.5 MB) p. 51
36. ↑ Annual report 2010 (PDF; 6.6 MB) p. 65
37. ↑ Annual report 2011 (PDF; 11.6 MB) p. 93
38. ↑ Annual report 2012 (PDF; 7.5 MB) p. 77
39. ↑ Annual report 2013 (PDF; 41.5 MB) p. 79
40. ↑ Annual report 2014 (PDF; 10.5 MB) p. 83
41. ↑ Annual report 2015 (PDF; 7.3 MB) p. 74
42. ↑ Annual report 2016 (PDF; 9.4 MB) p. 81
43. ↑ Annual report 2017 (PDF; 9.4 MB) p. 81
44. ↑ Annual Report 2018. p. 126 , accessed on July 27, 2019 (German). 
45. ↑ Eckart Lottmann: Berlin Fire Brigade - On the turntable ladder of history . be.bra, 1996, ISBN 3-930863-20-0 , pp. 61f.
46. ↑ Helmut Raab, Manfred Gihl: The fire brigade in action . SWAN, 1991, ISBN 3-89434-048-7 , pp. 86ff .; Der Tagesspiegel , December 17, 1989.
47. ↑ The hurricane Wings of Desire . In: taz , July 12, 2002.
48. ↑ Mission news of the Berlin fire brigade ( Memento from October 11, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
49. ↑ Seven Germans among the dead - All twelve victims of the attack identified . In: 24l , December 24, 2016.
50. ↑ www.tagesspiegel.de accessed on October 29, 2019
51. ↑ morgenpost.de accessed on May 21, 2020
52. ↑ rbb24 accessed on May 21, 2020
53. ↑ Annual report of the Berlin fire brigade 2012, p. 78 - (online at: berliner-feuerwehr.de )
54. ↑ Helping is fun , at Berliner-Feuerwehr.de, accessed on August 5, 2016
55. ↑ What is the Zehlendorf Voluntary Fire Brigade? ( Memento of February 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ), accessed on August 5, 2016
56. ^ Berlin fire brigade - authority structure
57. ↑ Project 2020 - making Berlin fire brigade fit for the future. In: Website of the Senate Department for the Interior and Sport of the State of Berlin. November 18, 2019, accessed on March 18, 2020 (German). 
58. ↑ Berlin fire brigade. Karlshorst volunteer fire department . https://www.berliner-feuerwehr.de/ueber-uns/standorte/freiwillige-feuerwehr/ff-karlshorst-6501/ , last accessed on July 6, 2020
59. ↑ As of 2014: 247,409,310 euros. Annual report of the Berlin fire brigade 2014 (online at: berliner-feuerwehr.de )
60. ↑ Status: December 2018 Berlin fire brigade in figures 2017
61. ↑ Berlin Fire Brigade - Berlin Fire Brigade in Figures 2015. (No longer available online.) In: www.berliner-feuerwehr.de. Archived from the original on June 11, 2016 ; accessed on June 11, 2016 . 
62. ^ Berlin fire brigade - telescopic fire brigade mast
63. ↑ berliner-feuerwehr.de ( Memento from January 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
64. ↑ Berlin fire brigade starts trial operation of operational drones. In: Website of the Berlin fire brigade. July 30, 2020, accessed on July 31, 2020 (German). 
65. ↑ Apartment fire in the converted attic. In: Website of the Berlin fire brigade. July 30, 2020, accessed on July 31, 2020 (German). 
66. ↑ Hans-Jörg Schierz: Berlin fire engines - From 1960 to today . Walter Podzun, 1998, ISBN 3-86133-192-6 , p. 22.
67. ↑ Eckart Lottmann: Berlin Fire Brigade - On the turntable ladder of history . be.bra, 1996, ISBN 3-930863-20-0 , p. 155.
68. ↑ LHF 16/12 Allrad (online at: berliner-feuerwehr.de )
69. ↑ Berlin Fire Brigade - LHF 20/8 all-wheel drive
70. ↑ http://www.berliner-feuerwehr.de/technik/fahrzeuge/rettungsdienstfahrzeuge/rettungswagen/
71. ↑ http://www.berliner-feuerwehr.de/technik/fahrzeuge/rettungsdienstfahrzeuge/rettungswagen-i/
72. ↑ http://www.berliner-feuerwehr.de/technik/fahrzeuge/rettungsdienstfahrzeuge/rettungswagen-s/
73. ↑ http://www.berliner-feuerwehr.de/technik/fahrzeuge/rettungsdienstfahrzeuge/stroke- Einsatz-mobil /