Like most German cities, Freiburg (population 220,000) has both a full time paid professional fire service and numerous additional volunteer fire companies. Unlike many, however, it does not operate any ambulances or EMS units. The full time watch provides staffing for both rescue pumps, one aerial and a command van, with a total of 18 crew members, as well as an additional two man team who crew any one or two of the special purpose units which may be required. These include the second aerial, the hazmat truck, the water tender, two rescue trucks, the crane, an incident command unit, a container transporter and a foam container.
If multiple specials are called out, off duty, administrative personnel and/or volunteers provide drivers and operators.
In addition, there are fourteen volunteer company fire stations. Together, the combined services attend around seven calls a day, with the full time staff handling around 85% of them without the help of any volunteers.
Unfortunately these are mostly AFAs, which occur three or four times a day, but do not mercifully take up much time as they have NEVER involved an actual fire.
Fires numbered only one or two a day last year, and volunteers attended several of these in co-ordination with the full time watch. It is important to note that they also provide standby staffing at the full time station on two or three occasions every day on average.
It is a very different model from what we might find in other countries, but it seems to work.
- The full time watch is limited in size, but has enough people and equipment to handle most routine daily calls.
- The volunteers are readily available to provide backup and/or fire cover on those occasions when the full time staff are too occupied to respond to any simultaneous alarms.
- If one or more really serious incidents occur, a very large combined force of around 160 riders under a unified command with a sizeable fleet of pumpers, aerials and special purpose units can be assembled rapidly.
If multiple specials are called out, off duty, administrative personnel and/or volunteers provide drivers and operators.
In addition, there are fourteen volunteer company fire stations. Together, the combined services attend around seven calls a day, with the full time staff handling around 85% of them without the help of any volunteers.
Unfortunately these are mostly AFAs, which occur three or four times a day, but do not mercifully take up much time as they have NEVER involved an actual fire.
Fires numbered only one or two a day last year, and volunteers attended several of these in co-ordination with the full time watch. It is important to note that they also provide standby staffing at the full time station on two or three occasions every day on average.
It is a very different model from what we might find in other countries, but it seems to work.
- The full time watch is limited in size, but has enough people and equipment to handle most routine daily calls.
- The volunteers are readily available to provide backup and/or fire cover on those occasions when the full time staff are too occupied to respond to any simultaneous alarms.
- If one or more really serious incidents occur, a very large combined force of around 160 riders under a unified command with a sizeable fleet of pumpers, aerials and special purpose units can be assembled rapidly.
Added by Rob Johnson on 27 March 2021.