If there’s a fire, the fire brigade will come. And usually quite quickly. The brochure, which was published on the occasion of the 100th birthday of the Offenbach fire brigade (BFO) and at the same time the 175th birthday of the volunteer fire brigade, was produced last year and has just been published.
The corona pandemic took its toll here too, so that neither the open day nor the planned anniversary academic celebration could take place. “Corona also challenged us. Among other things, we were busy setting up and running the vaccination center,” explains Uwe Sauer, head of the BFO. “But we are proud of the brochure and the film that was shot together with the students of the August Bebel School. Both were created last year and provide an exciting and, at the same time, informative insight into our daily work, even far beyond the anniversary.
Brochure as an affair of the heart
The brochure was also a matter of the heart, and an editorial team consisting of members of the various supervisory groups and the fire brigade administration got together early and began to think over the contents. The publication should represent history, but above all be future-oriented, inform citizens and interest them in the profession. Because even though most boys and girls want to be firefighters or women as children, firefighters have problems with young people. The demands on fitness are high and shift work is likely to be a deterrent at the start, suspects Thomas Picard, family man, top member of the in-house editorial team and passionate firefighter. “Sure, missions are sometimes long and demanding, but when it comes to protecting life and limb, you don’t watch the clock. Especially since there are compensatory times ».
The portraits in the six chapters show that the profession requires a wide range of qualifications. There is hardly anyone among them who has not previously worked in another profession and/or who has not been and is not already involved in volunteer fire brigades. “Both are closely intertwined, but a completed apprenticeship is a prerequisite for an application to the fire brigade,” explains Sauer, “We are all-rounders and rarely know what to expect on site.”
Sometimes even exotic animals. For this reason, the brochure is aimed at all residents of the city with practical advice and provides information on what to do in the event of a fire. It can be precious time before help arrives: in the event of a fire, you have on average only 120 seconds to get to safety. “Fire is generally underrated,” Picard knows, “but a burning wastebasket can quickly escalate into a room fire.” That’s why firefighters train and rehearse in case of a disaster at irregular intervals. The anniversary brochure and the film also provide information on this. As well as fire protection, provisioning, cat rescue and of course what exactly happens when the emergency number 112 is dialed.
Looking over the shoulders of those walking through fire
Approximately 170,000 emergency calls are made to the operational control center of the Offenbach fire brigade on Rhönstraße each year. The film crew led by Xenia Heiber, a student of the August-Bebel School in Offenbach, looked over the back of their colleagues and captured the dynamics of what was happening in the police station on camera. Then everything is dropped, slid down the pole at lightning speed, put on protective gear, and brought to the spot with flashing lights flashing. But assistants for design and media technology have captured work beyond assignments as well. It gets fixed, the pipes are washed and dried, and of course emergency situations are practiced again and again. Heiber and her team accompanied the respiratory protection exercises, the handling of dangerous substances and even the visit to the fire station in Hanau. They received technical support during the filming of the 15-minute film from Senior Fire Inspector Norbert Habenstein.
“We can be happy that professional firefighters not only extinguish fires and save people from fires, but are also available to prevent and combat many other dangers,” says Dr. Felix Schwenke, mayor and senior fire official, “is 24/7. Working as a firefighter or shift woman is undoubtedly a particular inconvenience, especially for those with families. Many evenings, weekends and holidays such as Christmas or New Year may not be spent and celebrated at home.Special thanks also go to all members of our three volunteer fire departments in Bieber, Rumpenheim and Waldheim, who also look after the youth and children’s fire departments with a lot commitment. It’s great that the Offenbach fire brigade is so firmly anchored in the center of society in our city.”
The 75-page brochure “100 years of the professional fire brigade in Offenbach, 175 years of the voluntary fire brigade” can be downloaded here:
100 years of the professional fire brigade in Offenbach, 175 years of the voluntary fire brigade in Offenbach
(Text: PM Fire Brigade Offenbach)
