At around 8:30 a.m., the Mainz Fire Department was called to respond to smoke coming from a residential and commercial building at the Brandzentrum in the Old Town. Upon the arrival of the first responders, the situation was confirmed. The fire was burning beneath the facade in the area of a rooftop terrace. As the operation progressed, it was determined that the fire had spread to the building’s expansion joint. Several apartments had to be evacuated due to heavy smoke.

Extinguishing efforts proved to be very complex and time-consuming due to the fire’s spread into the expansion joint. Building cladding and insulation had to be removed. The fire in the expansion joint was fought using multiple fire hoses equipped with special nozzles and the application of foam. In addition, the Worms Fire Department was called in with the state-wide "Cobra fire suppression system," as well as the THW, who assisted with the firefighting efforts and later contributed to the success of the operation.

Later in the course of the operation, a medical emergency occurred involving a person inside the building. The person was treated on-site immediately by emergency medical services and did not need to be transported to a hospital.

Due to the intensive firefighting efforts, the water used to extinguish the fire seeped into a retail store, causing water damage there. Members of the volunteer fire department prevented the water damage from spreading using several water vacuums, while firefighting operations in the upper part of the building could continue.

The Criminal Investigation Unit (KDD) was on site and began investigating the cause of the fire. The cause of the fire remains unclear and is the subject of a police investigation. No information is currently available regarding the extent of the damage. No damage occurred in the apartments, so all residents were able to return to their homes once the operation was concluded.

The preliminary end of the operation was reported around 5:00 p.m. A post-fire inspection by the fire department took place in the evening around 7:00 p.m.

The operation involved 34 personnel from both stations of the Mainz Professional Fire Department and the City and Weisenau Volunteer Fire Departments, with a total of eight vehicles; the Worms Fire Department with 3 personnel and one vehicle, including a "Cobra fire suppression system"; and the THW with a technical advisor and specialized units. In addition, the emergency medical services were on site with an ambulance, as were the police with a patrol car and the KDD.

The Mainz Fire Department was called to a residential fire involving a rescue operation this afternoon around 4:00 p.m. in the Hechtsheim neighborhood.

When the fire department arrived, smoke was already billowing from an apartment on the ground floor of the multi-unit building. Since it was unclear whether anyone was still inside the burning apartment, firefighters forced their way into the affected unit.

Fortunately, this was not the case, allowing the crew to focus on extinguishing the fire and inspecting all areas of the building. A total of three teams wearing breathing apparatus extinguished the fire, removed debris from the affected apartment, checked the adjacent studio apartments for smoke damage, and ventilated the building.

Due to the spread of smoke in the affected apartment, it is uninhabitable until further notice and has been sealed off by the Criminal Investigation Division. The division has launched an investigation into the cause of the fire.

The Mainz Fire Department was on the scene with personnel from Fire Stations 1 and 2 as well as the Mainz-Hechtsheim Volunteer Fire Department. Emergency medical services and the police also supported the response.

This morning, the Mainz Fire Department responded to a major water leak on the outskirts of the University Medical Center campus. A technical malfunction occurred at the main transfer point from the municipal drinking water network, causing a massive water leak. The basement of the transfer point was flooded to a depth of about three meters over an area of approximately 50 square meters. The fire department pumped out the water using several submersible pumps and discharged it into the sewer system. The pumping operation alone took about an hour and a half. Patient care was never compromised, and hospital operations were never restricted, as the system was immediately switched over to redundant systems. In the area of the incident, Helmholtzweg had to be closed for the duration of the operation. The Mainz Fire Department responded with a total of 13 personnel and 5 vehicles from Fire Station 2 of the professional fire department.

On Thursday afternoon, employees at a company in the Mainz-Hechtsheim industrial park noticed that a fire had broken out in their warehouse. They immediately alerted the fire department by calling 911. When the fire department arrived, smoke was billowing out of the warehouse door. Fortunately, everyone was able to evacuate the building without injury. Wearing heavy-duty breathing apparatus, a fire crew began fighting the blaze, which was quickly brought under control. Within just a few minutes, the "fire out" call was made. Several stacked sheets of coarse particleboard had caught fire. While these pose a very high fire risk, it was thanks to a water pipe running in the immediate vicinity that the situation did not escalate further. Water flowed from a fitting damaged by the heat onto part of the fire scene. This contained the flames to such an extent that the fire could not spread further. The cause of the fire is still unknown. After the fire was extinguished, the hall was ventilated and then checked for hot spots using a thermal imaging camera. Approximately 25 personnel from the police, the Mainz Professional Fire Department’s emergency medical services, and the Mainz-Hechtsheim Volunteer Fire Department were on the scene.

On Saturday, October 11, 2025, the City of Mainz’s own civil protection unit was put into service for the first time at Fire Station 2: the Rapid Response Catering Unit (SEG-V). With this unit, it will be possible in the future to reliably provide up to 300 emergency responders or affected individuals with hot and cold meals, even over extended periods of time. The ceremonial commissioning was performed by Mayor Nino Haase and Fire and Disaster Management Inspector Stefan Behrendt.

Volunteers had signed up in response to a call from the city via social media, as well as through advertising supported by the volunteer fire departments of the City of Mainz. The only requirement was that applicants be at least 18 years old; prior experience in the fire department or disaster response was not required.

"With the SEG-V, we have taken an important step toward ensuring that emergency responders and affected citizens are supplied at all times, even in an emergency. It is a great success that we were able to recruit numerous people to join the unit and thus better prepare the city of Mainz for crisis situations," said Mayor Nino Haase.

"With the SEG-V, we are not only meeting the state’s latest legal requirements but also ensuring that supplies can be provided without delay, both in the event of a major disaster and during smaller incidents. At a time when volunteerism is becoming increasingly rare, it is a remarkable achievement that more than 30 people have made themselves available for this important and often unseen task," explained Fire and Disaster Protection Inspector Stefan Behrendt.

The SEG-V has already been equipped with a field kitchen and a refrigerated trailer; additional vehicles are currently being planned. In the future, meals will be prepared and served both at Fire Station 2 and on-site.

The Mainz Fire Department was on the scene for nearly four hours on Thursday afternoon on Heiligkreuzweg in Mainz-Hechtsheim. Gasoline in the sewer system near a gas station had temporarily created an explosive mixture. Working together with other agencies and the gas station operator, the sewers were flushed, pumped out, and ventilated.

The fire department had already responded on Thursday morning due to an unidentifiable chemical odor but could not detect any abnormal readings. The odor had normalized after ventilation. At 11 a.m., an employee at a gas station again reported a strong gasoline odor on the premises. During the follow-up response, however, the measuring devices at the sewer manholes quickly triggered an alarm.

Due to the explosive atmosphere, additional fire department personnel were called in, two company buildings were evacuated, and Heiligkreuzweg was closed. The gas station’s operations had already been shut down in an exemplary manner and emergency shutdowns activated before the fire department was alerted.

While fire safety measures were being implemented, the fire department, municipal services, and the environmental agency determined that gasoline had apparently entered the sewer system and that its highly explosive vapors were now spreading throughout the sewer network. The vapors were extracted using an explosion-proof fan. At the same time, the sewer system was flushed with large quantities of water. This dilution reduced the concentration of gasoline. The gasoline-water mixture was also extracted using vacuum trucks.

As a safety precaution, the municipal utilities completely cut off power to the gas station premises. The wastewater treatment plant was informed that contaminated water might arrive there. Since both the gas station’s sewage network and the public sewer system were affected, the measures lasted until just before 3 p.m. Only then were no more gasoline vapors detectable.

It is unknown how the gasoline entered or was discharged into the wastewater. The police have launched an investigation. Operations at the evacuated company buildings resumed at 2 p.m. The affected gas station will remain out of service until a further inspection by a specialized company.

The Mainz Fire Department responded with seven vehicles and 16 personnel.

On Friday at 2:22 p.m., the Mainz Fire Department was alerted by the police to respond to the Neustadt neighborhood. The call was prompted by stones falling from the roof; they had come loose from a fire wall on the gable end of a residential building on the 4th floor and were falling onto the building’s entrance and the street.

Upon arrival, emergency responders observed that additional pieces of sandstone were threatening to detach. Using the turntable ladder, the fire department was first able to inspect the hazardous area up close and then professionally remove further loose stones, thereby preventing any further falling debris.

Since the hazardous area was located directly above the entrance to the affected building, the THW was called in as backup. Together with a construction consultant, the fire department was able to install a temporary wooden structure on the gable to prevent further spalling.

In addition, the THW erected a temporary protective structure over the building’s entrance, allowing residents to enter and exit the building again.

Thanks to the coordinated efforts of the fire department, THW, and police, the hazardous area was effectively secured. No one was injured.

Shortly before 5:00 p.m. today, the Mainz Fire Department was notified of a multi-vehicle accident on Interstate 60 heading toward Darmstadt. Based on the initial report, it was assumed that there were a significant number of injuries. The accident occurred just past the Mainz-Laubenheim interchange. A total of three vehicles and five people, including two children, were involved in the accident. The driver of one vehicle had to be extricated by the fire department using hydraulic rescue equipment before he could be handed over to emergency medical services. All those involved were transported by emergency medical services to nearby hospitals. The highway was fully closed in the direction of Darmstadt during the rescue operations. A long traffic jam formed, extending all the way to the Hechtsheim-West interchange.

Twenty-nine members of the Mainz Fire Department were on the scene. The police were present with four officers, and the emergency medical services with 15 personnel.

A suspected natural gas leak in the basement of an apartment building in Mainz’s Neustadt neighborhood on Friday afternoon led to the timely detection of another dangerous gas. Due to improper demolition work, carbon monoxide (CO) had accumulated in dangerous quantities.

At 4:26 p.m., the fire department received a report that natural gas was clearly visible leaking in the basement on Frauenlobstraße. In response to this report, 30 firefighters with nine vehicles from the Mainz City Professional Fire Department and Volunteer Fire Department were dispatched. Once on site, the all-clear was given regarding the explosion risk: it was not natural gas, but dust from demolition work.

During further investigation, the fire department’s gas detectors sounded the alarm: an extremely high concentration of carbon monoxide (CO) had accumulated in the basement. Wearing breathing apparatus, the fire department searched for the cause and found it: a total of five gasoline-powered tools were being operated in the basement. Due to the lack of exhaust ventilation, the exhaust fumes had accumulated in the basement.

The construction workers could no longer be examined by emergency medical services because they had left the scene on their own. In its pure form, carbon monoxide is colorless and odorless and leads, even with a delay, to potentially life-threateningly poor oxygen exchange in the blood. It is produced by the operation of internal combustion engines, incomplete combustion, or even by charcoal grills. Therefore, these should never be operated in enclosed spaces

The fire department extensively ventilated the basement and inspected the adjacent apartments, into which, fortunately, no carbon monoxide had yet entered. The ventilation work lasted over 90 minutes. The authorities responsible for the construction site were informed and are now deciding on the continuation of further construction work. Had it gone unnoticed, the dangerous gas could have spread into the apartments and caused numerous injuries there without anyone realizing it.

At the same time as this operation, an alarm from a gas detection system at a University Medical Center facility and a burning trash can in Hechtsheim were reported. The gas alarm turned out to be a false alarm; the trash can was extinguished by residents and the fire department.