Safety of the fire stations in the Main-Kinzig district put to the test!

Safety of the fire stations in the Main-Kinzig district put to the test!

A year ago, a devastating fire rocked the vehicle hall in Stadtallendorf, which the fire department was barely able to stop. The damage caused here amounts to over 20 million euros. These dramatic events have led to a rethinking of the safety of fire stations in the Main-Kinzig district. Scary news and a call to action are often closely linked. As gnz.de reports, the fire departments have initiated various measures to prevent future fire disasters.

A highlight in this context was a fire in Mömbris, which went off lightly due to a smoke alarm. Attentive neighbors immediately alerted the fire department, which thanks to their quick response prevented anything worse from happening. This clearly shows how important modern security precautions are.

Safety measures in the fire departments

As part of the revision of the safety protocols, the fire departments in the Main-Kinzig district have retrofitted their firehouses. In Linsengericht, for example, smoke alarms that are linked to an app for firefighters have been used in vehicles since the beginning of the year. This innovative technology enables emergency services to be alerted quickly in the event of a fire, and energy in Bruchköbel was invested in comparable measures.
But not all initiatives succeeded. A discussion about the installation of fire alarm systems in Bruchköbel was rejected due to the high costs. In Gründau, smoke detectors have been in use in fire engines since 2020, but no further investments are planned. These different approaches in the region reflect the different priorities and capabilities of each fire department.

In Gelnhausen, on the other hand, several equipment sheds are equipped with fire alarm systems that automatically alert the control center. This offers a high security standard and complete control. While in Waechtersbach only the fire station in the city center is aware of this, all vehicles are equipped with smoke detectors. Hanau sees itself in a similar situation, regardless of whether only the main fire station has a fire alarm system or the newly built volunteer fire brigade bases are also equipped with modern smoke detectors.

Standards and regulations

The legal requirements for the planning and unavoidability of fire brigade areas should not be neglected either. According to the latest guidelines of the amended DIN 14090, which was published in February 2024, fire brigade access routes must meet certain requirements in order to be able to act quickly in an emergency. This means that access and movement areas must be kept clear.

The new standard stipulates that the minimum height and width of fire brigade access must be 3.5 meters and adjacent components must be fire-resistant. These specifications aim to increase safety in fire and disaster situations so that fire engines can quickly reach the source of danger. forum-verlag.com has summarized the existing requirements in detail. An obstacle-free strip of terrain and the load-bearing capacity of the areas for fire engines up to 10 tons have the highest priority.

Overall, the fire departments in the Main-Kinzig district are continually working to expand and optimize their safety standards. It remains to be hoped that the practical tests of the new technologies and standards will help ensure the safety of citizens and avoid catastrophic situations like those in Stadtallendorf.