H 112 - 2024

Report

A task force from the Donnersberg district traveled to the Trier-Saarburg district with numerous vehicles and emergency personnel to provide assistance, as the region was struggling with the aftermath of heavy rain. The unit was led by Hans-Peter Dech, deputy fire chief of the Winnweiler municipal association, and consisted of a total of 12 vehicles from the municipal associations of Göllheim, Winnweiler, and Nordpfälzer-Land, as well as the DRK’s SEG-V (Rapid Response Catering Unit). The teams were ultimately deployed to the town of Kasel, where the Ruwer River had burst its banks and flooded numerous homes. This tributary of the Moselle normally has a water level of less than one meter at this location, but it rose within a very short time to a peak of 3.15 meters—equivalent to a 50-year flood. Consequently, the floodwaters forced their way through, inundating numerous basements in the process.

Since the local fire departments had already been on the scene for hours and it was absolutely necessary for both the personnel to rest and the equipment to be replenished, the Donnersbergkreis Fire Department took over operations in the town overnight until the following morning. The teams’ main task was to strategically deploy the available submersible pumps and sandbags to keep water levels in residents’ basements as low as possible, so that heating systems and other infrastructure would not be damaged or cause further damage. Over time, several response sites emerged that had previously been impossible to cover, as significantly more residents were affected than there were emergency personnel and resources available. Consequently, the unit commander conducted a comprehensive reconnaissance to gain an overview of the existing incident sites and allocate personnel and resources accordingly.

Because water levels did not drop overnight—and in some cases actually continued to rise—emergency responders were unable to completely drain the water from the homes. They were only able to begin this process much later, once the water had stopped flowing in. Nevertheless, the protective measures prevented the situation from getting worse. The following day, the incident site was handed back over to the local unit.