Major fire in Hessisch Lichtenau: 150,000 euros worth of damage to carpentry!

Major fire in Hessisch Lichtenau: 150,000 euros worth of damage to carpentry!

In Hessisch Lichtenau, a tranquil town in the Werra-Meißner district, there was a devastating major fire on Friday evening that affected a local carpentry shop and an integrated funeral home. The fire department was alerted around 8:30 p.m. when residents saw thick smoke and flames coming from the workshop building. It was a dramatic scenario: More than 85 emergency services from the fire department, rescue service, the DRK rapid response group (SEG) and the police rushed to fight the flames and prevent anything worse from happening. The material damage is estimated at around 150,000 euros.

When the first firefighters arrived, the flames had already reached considerable extent. The head of operations reported “thick smoke and flames that were visibly coming out of the roof.” In order to effectively extinguish the fire, several respiratory protection teams went into the building, while extensive extinguishing attacks were launched from the outside using a turntable ladder. The chip bunker and the photovoltaic system on the roof received particular attention to prevent the fire from spreading, reports nh24.de.

A successful but strenuous operation

Willi Schmidt, the operations manager of the Hessisch Lichtenau fire department, states: "It was an intense challenge to contain the flames. But we managed to prevent it from spreading to the adjacent residential building." After about an hour and a half, the fire was under control and the extinguishing measures were completed. In order to reach embers in hard-to-reach places, part of the roof had to be opened. The fire department even used a thermal imaging camera to detect and extinguish any remaining embers.

Schmidt praised the excellent cooperation between the participating fire departments from Fürstenhagen, Walburg, Velmeden and Hopfelde. In addition, the SEG Hessisch Lichtenau ensured the replacement of the regular rescue service, provided ambulances and looked after the emergency services. Safety precautions such as a hygiene concept were also used.

The uncertain tomorrow

While there were fortunately no injuries, the cause of the fire is still unclear. Investigations by the criminal police in Eschwege are already in full swing. Such incidents are not uncommon in Germany. The German Fire Brigade Association registers around 200,000 fires and explosions every year. It is therefore all the more important to be well prepared and to act quickly in an emergency, as was impressively demonstrated by the fire in Hessisch Lichtenau.

In times when a fire burns somewhere in Germany every two to three minutes, it is to be hoped that the causes of such dramatic events such as those in Hessisch Lichtenau will be clarified quickly in order to be able to better prevent future fires. The fire brigade averted something worse through their quick and effective action.

We hope that the affected businesses will get back on their feet soon and would like to thank all emergency services for their tireless service in this hectic and dangerous situation. We will continue to report on the results of the investigation into the cause of the fire. In the meantime, an important lesson remains: safety and precaution are essential - not just in the workshop, but also in your own home.