On Friday afternoon, a traffic accident occurred on Hattenbergstraße in Mainz’s Neustadt district involving a car and a streetcar. The car was struck on the side by the streetcar and dragged along for several meters.

The tram passengers were uninjured in the accident. The driver of the car was trapped inside his vehicle. Thanks to the excellent cooperation between emergency medical services and the fire department, the driver was quickly freed. The fire department used heavy hydraulic rescue equipment to free him.

During the rescue operation, there were significant disruptions to public transportation and road traffic.

Unfortunately, many pedestrians once again stopped at the scene of the accident, and some disregarded the police barriers.

The Mainz Fire Department had to handle several simultaneous calls this Saturday afternoon, which required a significant number of personnel.

Traffic accident on the A60 – vintage sports car crashes into the median barrier. At 12:32 p.m., the fire department dispatch center received a report of a traffic accident on the A60 in the direction of Darmstadt near the Weisenauer Bridge. A vintage sports car had lost control for reasons that remain unclear and crashed into the median barrier. The vehicle came to a stop in the left and center lanes. The fire department secured the accident scene and collected spilled fluids. Fortunately, the driver was uninjured. The accident caused significant traffic delays in the direction of Darmstadt. Fire Station 1 and the Laubenheim Fire Department were on the scene with 19 personnel, along with the emergency medical services and the highway patrol.

False alarm on Kaiserstrasse – smoke detector went off. At 12:35 p.m., residents of an apartment building on Kaiserstrasse reported that a smoke detector had gone off in one of the units. Fortunately, the call turned out to be a false alarm. Ten firefighters from Fire Station 2 were dispatched.

Shed fire in Mainz-Finthen – fire quickly extinguished. Around 12:42 p.m., the fire department was called to a garage fire in Mainz-Finthen. For unknown reasons, a fire had broken out in a shed. The resident, who was not at home at the time of the fire, noticed the smoke via a camera app and informed a neighbor. The neighbor attempted to fight the fire with fire extinguishers but was unable to extinguish it due to its intensity. The first fire department unit to arrive, Finthen, proceeded wearing breathing apparatus and prevented the fire from spreading to the residence. After a few minutes, the fire was under control; mop-up operations continued until 2:00 p.m. Fire Stations 1 and 2, as well as the Finthen Volunteer Fire Department, were on the scene with a total of 22 personnel. Emergency medical services and the police were also present. Public transportation in the Sertoriusrings area was temporarily disrupted. Special thanks go to the neighbors who spontaneously provided the emergency personnel with coffee and Christmas cookies.

Oil spill on Mühlenstraße cleared.

At 12:49 p.m., the fire department was called to an oil spill on Mühlenstraße. Two firefighters from Fire Station 2 eliminated the hazard.

Late this afternoon, around 5:00 p.m., the Mainz Fire Department was called to a traffic accident on Interstate 60 heading toward Mainz, just past the B9 on-ramp. The accident involved a passenger car and a truck. First responders provided exemplary initial care to one injured person until emergency medical services arrived. In consultation with the emergency medical services, the fire department used technical equipment to extricate the person from the car. The person was then transported by emergency medical services to a hospital in Mainz. The cause of the accident is currently unknown. Due to rush-hour traffic and the closure of several lanes, a significant traffic jam formed on the A60. In addition to the Mainz Fire Department, the emergency medical services and the highway patrol were also on the scene.

At 5:00 p.m., the Mainz Fire Department was alerted by the fire alarm system at a hotel in downtown Mainz. While the responding fire units were still en route, an employee at the fire dispatch center confirmed by phone that there was a fire on the 6th floor. Because the evacuation alarm had been triggered in the hotel, many guests had already left their rooms on their own. The fire department inspected the affected area and quickly determined that the sprinkler system had completely extinguished the fire in a kitchenette. An inspection using a thermal imaging camera confirmed the fire department’s assessment. Hotel operations are currently running again without restrictions. Six affected individuals were examined by emergency medical services, of whom, fortunately, only one sustained minor injuries. The Mainz Fire Department, along with emergency medical services and the police, responded with 20 personnel from both fire stations.

An automatic fire alarm system at a senior living facility in the Finthen neighborhood triggered an alert. Even as emergency responders were en route, the nursing staff informed the fire department dispatch center that a real fire had broken out in a living area. In response, the incident commander escalated the incident level, which resulted in additional firefighters and the Health Division command being alerted.

Upon arrival at the scene, a distinct smell of smoke was noticeable. The nursing staff provided the fire department with exemplary briefings on the situation. It turned out that, fortunately, the affected living area was unoccupied.

The fire was quickly contained and extinguished by the fire department. However, smoke spread significantly, causing the smoke extraction process to take approximately two hours. Thanks to the building’s preventive fire safety measures, the nursing home can continue to operate, with the exception of the affected living area.

A total of about 50 personnel from the fire department, emergency medical services, and police were on the scene. Shortly before 7:00 a.m., the scene was handed over to the nursing home management.

The Mainz-Bretzenheim Volunteer Fire Department manned the vacant Fire Station 1 during the operation. After about three hours, the operation was completed for all personnel.

On Christmas Day, around 7:30 p.m., the Mainz Fire Department was called to the Oberstadt neighborhood of Mainz. Neighbors in an apartment building heard a smoke alarm going off and cries for help coming from a ground-floor apartment. They immediately called the police, who in turn notified the Mainz Fire Department dispatch center of the situation.

When the fire department arrived, a distinct smell of smoke was noticeable, and several smoke alarms had gone off. The fire department forced entry into the apartment and rescued a helpless 78-year-old man who was inside the heavily smoke-filled apartment.

The cause of the smoke was burnt baguettes in the oven. This incident once again highlights the importance of smoke detectors combined with attentive neighbors.

Both stations of the professional fire department, the police, the emergency medical services, and Mainzer Netze were on the scene.

This New Year’s Eve morning marked the 51st edition of the Mainz Fire Department’s traditional New Year’s Day swim. While around 400 onlookers watched the spectacle from the banks of the Rhine in near-freezing temperatures, 200 swimmers took to the 13°C waters of the Rhine.

Mayor Nino Haase gave the starting signal for the brave swimmers right on time at 10 a.m., before joining the participants himself as a swimmer. They bid farewell to the year, some in creative costumes or with floating accessories, as they swam together along the banks of the Rhine. The experienced and professionally equipped swimmers were supported by several rescue boats—because without training, equipment, and safety measures, swimming in the Rhine is life-threatening!

This year, the fireboat was not available as a launch platform. To ensure a safe start, participants therefore had to set off from the stairs at the Kaisertor for the first time. While this significantly shortened the route, the fun of the joint event remained undiminished. Next year, the "Abschwimmen" will take place again in its usual form.

The "Abschwimmen" highlights, on the one hand, the fire department’s special mission—water rescue. On the other hand, it once again fostered and strengthened ties with other organizations active in water rescue. In addition to the conversations and the fun of "collective water treading," support for the good cause was the main focus.

As usual, the proceeds from this year’s accompanying fundraising campaign will be donated to a good cause. This year’s donation goes to the “Frühstart e.V.” association in Mainz. Founded in 1993, this non-profit association advocates for premature babies, sick newborns, and at-risk children. Together, they aim to improve the care of children in the neonatal intensive care unit and the associated follow-up care facilities at the Children’s Hospital of Mainz University Medical Center through various measures.

The diverse group of participants included the fire departments of Aschaffenburg, Kaiserslautern, Ludwigshafen, Maintal, Main-Taunus-Kreis, Mainz, Neustadt an der Weinstraße, Offenbach, and Wiesbaden, the riot police, the water police, the German Armed Forces, the State Fire Service and Disaster Management Academy, various local chapters of the DLRG and the THW, private diving clubs, and staff from the political and administrative sectors of the City of Mainz. Additionally, other familiar faces from politics and society were present on the banks of the Rhine.

Following the reception hosted by Mayor Nino Haase and Mr. Stefan Behrendt, Fire and Disaster Protection Inspector for the City of Mainz, in the Rheingoldhalle, the event concluded with a cozy get-together in a convivial atmosphere. After the cancellation due to flooding in 2023, the closing swim was once again a complete success, despite the altered route.

The Mainz Fire Department wishes all citizens a safe start to the new year and all the best for 2025.