After a serious fire with risk of explosion in Müllheim, the police are investigating the cause, including due to arson. The solvents caught fire on the premises of the Geveko company. 120 forces were deployed.
After a serious fire with risk of explosion in Müllheim, the police are investigating the cause, including due to arson. The solvents caught fire on the premises of the Geveko company. 120 forces were deployed.
The huge wall of fire could be seen from afar on Saturday night. When the firefighters raised the alarm at 8:42 pm, the plastic containers, part of a pallet warehouse and a large tank were on fire. The spilled solvent fueled the fire and created a high risk of explosion. Firefighters, deployed with 25 vehicles, were able to prevent the fire from spreading to Geveko Markings Germany’s production building, thereby causing much greater damage.
The Müllheim firefighters were the first to arrive and their tactical approach was able to avert a catastrophe at the last second. While Operations Chief Michael Stöcklin organized the operation, Section Chief Holger Höfflin briefly struggled with the fire extinguishing water supply.
According to Höfflin, a fire hydrant was probably disconnected from the water supply due to construction work on the Rhine Valley railway. A large number of fire engines, which were rolling towards the source of the fire via the B 378, had to be filled until until the hose could not be changed to a fire hydrant a little further away.
The fire was fueled by a highly flammable liquid, a solvent and a spill of paint from the containers. The Kirchzarten fire brigade drone group was asked to provide an overview of the night operational site. In the dangerous phase of the operation, i.e. when the fire spread further, other firefighters rushed to the fire site, including the Breisach respiratory protective equipment truck with spare equipment and breathing air cylinders, the ABC reconnaissance vehicle of the Ihringen fire brigade to measure possible pollutants in the air, which from the fire train district in the south of Breisgau and numerous fire tank vehicles from nearby barrages.
The firefighters were supported by the Technical Rescue Agency, the German Red Cross and many police forces, who cordoned off the scene, blocked the B 378 (the connecting road) and started investigations while the fire was still in the process of shutting down. “We are currently investigating in all directions,” said the head of the Müllheim police station, the police chief Thomas Müller, and said: “Thanks to the timely extinction work, we have averted a medium-sized disaster.” To reduce the risk of explosion, an extinguishing foam mat was laid on the scene. In the following days, the fire investigators carried out further investigations. The Freiburg Criminal Police (tel. 0761/882 2880) sought witnesses who had suspicious perceptions or who could provide information on the facts.
In addition to the other armed forces, the chief of the district fire brigade Alexander Widmaier and the chemical consultant, the representatives of the lower water authority at the district office and the trade supervisory authority and the Mayor Martin Löffler. The purification plant was also informed of the discharge of contaminated extinguishing water in order to promptly initiate safety measures. .
While the firefighters were able to prevent the worst with water and foam, a team of firefighters were confronted by onlookers. They accused the firefighters of wasting precious drinking water. From the standpoint of the emergency services and experts, this was unsurpassed in terms of ignorance. In order to always be able to draw sufficient fire water from the Müllheim water supply, a public service employee from Müllheim / Staaufen checked and inspected the overhead tanks.
The post-extinction work and the fire guard lasted longer. The damage to the property temporarily amounted to police chief Müller at several 10,000 euros.
