Fire department in Lower Saxony: women's power for disaster control!

Fire department in Lower Saxony: women's power for disaster control!

In Lower Saxony, the fire department is taking a new, fresh approach. Loud n-tv It is time to prepare the fire brigade well and arm it for the challenges of the 21st century. Olaf Kapke, President of the State Fire Brigade Association, draws a clear line: More active women should be integrated into the fire departments in order to strengthen the team. In addition, incoming skilled workers should also play an important role in the redesign. The need to promote the “human resource” in the fire service is not overlooked.

The challenges facing the fire service have changed significantly in recent times. The entire industry must adapt and modernize to meet increased demands. Kapke is pushing for faster construction speeds for new training centers, ward houses and modern seminar rooms. This infrastructure is urgently needed in order to train the emergency services accordingly. Clear progress has recently been noted in combating forest and vegetation fires.

Membership numbers on the rise

A positive trend can also be seen in the fire brigade's membership numbers: Towards the end of 2023, the voluntary fire brigades in Lower Saxony recorded an increase to 131,844 members, an increase of 1,262 compared to the previous year the Lower Saxony reported. This continuous increase is remarkable, especially when you consider that the number of fire departments in Lower Saxony has fallen by 144 since 2013.

The increase in the proportion of women is particularly pleasing. The proportion of women has grown significantly in recent years. The number of female members rose from 10.5 percent in 2013 to 14.2 percent in 2022, an increase of 41.9 percent. In 2022, 18,549 women were already actively working in the fire service ranks.

Challenges and successes

The needs surrounding disaster protection have grown. Loud Fire department magazine The fire brigade had to be called out to over 125,500 missions in 2022, and the number of forest fires nationwide rose to 451 - the highest number since records began. Membership development shows an increase of 5.3 percent between 2013 and 2022, although the growth curve is flattening. In this context, a certain connection is seen between the closure of smaller fire departments and the strengthening of larger locations.

With the ongoing “Yes to the Fire Brigade” campaign, which has been aiming to recruit members since 2012, the effort to actively promote young talent is far from over. The positive developments can be attributed primarily to the great youth work that the fire departments have done in recent years.

In short, the fire department in Lower Saxony continues to show itself as a solid community that faces the challenges of modern times and at the same time pays attention to greater diversity within its ranks. The next few years will show how these advances will continue to develop and what new concepts can be advanced to improve the security situation in Lower Saxony.