Forest fire danger in Meinersen: Are we better prepared than in 1975?

Forest fire danger in Meinersen: Are we better prepared than in 1975?

The alarm bells are loud again in the Gifhorn district because the heat and the prolonged drought are bringing back memories of the forest fire disaster of 1975. The current weather situation is similar to the threat at the time, which posed major challenges for both nature and the fire department. Sven J. Mayer, community fire chief for the Meinersen community, emphasizes that they are better prepared than they were back then, but that a catastrophe cannot be completely ruled out. “The climate is changing and is bringing with it more frequent extreme weather situations,” explains Mayer. The fire department also learned the lessons from 1975 and massively improved its equipment.

At that time, it was mainly insufficient fire engines and the long distance to the water sources that led to a slow response. Today the district has twelve weirs and four state-of-the-art tank fire engines. Every local fire department has at least one vehicle with a water tank of up to 2,000 liters, and modern jet pipes are standardized to meter the water efficiently. Thermal imaging cameras are now also being used to quickly detect embers.

Effective alerting and infrastructure

Another advance is improved alerting. Calls from cell phones have made the need to visit fire alarm centers obsolete. With the “WB1” alarm standard, several weirs and tankers are mobilized to prevent wildfires in good time. Since 1975, over 250 fire water wells have been installed and a maintenance budget of 70,000 euros has been set for this year.

But not everything is rosy. Mayer warns that despite the numerous improvements, a false sense of security is not appropriate. Increases in forest paths, which could hinder extinguishing work, are particularly problematic. In addition, only 50 to 60 of the 500 emergency services receive a special training course on fighting forest fires each year. “Increasing readiness is important, but we still need more training for our emergency services,” continued Mayer.

All in all, it shows that the Gifhorn district has learned from the past. The fire departments are now in a much better position than they were 50 years ago. This, combined with a watchful eye on the current weather situation and the challenges of climate change, gives citizens hope that there will be no repeat of the 1975 catastrophe. Matthias Meyer from the local fire department emphasizes: “We have a good knack for the challenges that lie ahead of us!”