Last Wednesday, June 17, a ceremony was held in the courtyard of Salder Castle to honor volunteer firefighters and the unit leaders of aid organizations in Salzgitter. In addition, 17 emergency and specialty vehicles were officially put into service.

In addition to the leaders of the volunteer fire departments and aid organizations being honored, those present included Mayor Frank Klingebiel, Senior Ministerial Advisor Klaus Wickboldt representing the Lower Saxony Ministry of the Interior, Sports, and Digitalization, Yannik Felten representing Öffentliche Versicherung Braunschweig, First Deputy Mayor and Fire Department Commissioner Eric Neiseke, Arne Sicks, Chief of the Salzgitter Professional Fire Department, and numerous members of the Salzgitter City Council.

Mayor Frank Klingebiel opened the event: “I am proud that today we can officially commission a total of 17 emergency and specialty vehicles. Of these, we procured 11 vehicles ourselves using municipal funds totaling approximately 2.59 million euros. An additional 6 vehicles, valued at approximately 2.3 million euros, were allocated to the city of Salzgitter by the federal and state governments; they will be stationed in Salzgitter and deployed both within the city limits and beyond.”

First Deputy Mayor and Fire Department Director Eric Neiseke explains: “Among the 11 new city vehicles are, for example, two firefighting trucks for disaster response and two command vehicles. Among the 6 allocated vehicles are, for example, a swap-body vehicle with a roll-off container for fighting wildfires and a command and communications vehicle.”

As part of the vehicle handover, Yannik Felten also presented a donation check for 11,800 euros to the city of Salzgitter. Detlef Weidner and Alexander Zapf from MAN presented a symbolic key for three vehicles procured by the municipality.

Mayor Frank Klingebiel emphasized: “In Salzgitter, we are very well positioned when it comes to fire protection, hazard prevention, and civil defense and disaster management. The citizens trust us and rely on us. And rightly so! Here, the professional fire department, volunteer fire departments, plant fire departments, aid organizations, and the police work together hand in hand with a high degree of competence and passion. It is also important that our emergency responders can rely on their equipment and vehicles. We, as the City of Salzgitter—with support from the state and the federal government—will ensure this, both today and in the future.”

In a second part of the ceremony, Mayor Frank Klingebiel presided over the appointment of 16 unit leaders from the local aid organizations DLRG, DRK, JUH, and the wildfire response team. He said with emotion: “This evening, I am particularly pleased to be able to appoint you, dear new leaders of our dedicated emergency response organizations. You are always there when you are needed. Whether it’s water rescue, wildfires, accidents, large-scale emergencies, or the care and transport of the injured. Together with our volunteer fire departments and our professional fire department, you and your teams are the backbone of emergency response and civil and disaster protection in Salzgitter. And there’s more: you are also on the scene in other cities and communities whenever your help and expertise are needed. You all put your heart and soul into your work, demonstrate leadership skills, show compassion, exhibit competence, have a strong sense of responsibility, and dedicate yourselves with passion in your free time and without pay. These are the qualities you bring to the table and that you will put to use in the future as leaders of our emergency response organizations for the benefit of our community. I am proud of your important work and, on behalf of the City of Salzgitter, I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to you.”

Klingebiel presented the certificates of appointment to:

• Detlef Maushake as squad leader of the Special Vegetation Firefighting Unit, Forest Fire Team,
• Sven Neumann as deputy platoon leader of the Special Vegetation Firefighting Unit, Forest Fire Team,
• Christian Dejl as group leader of the Equipment Group, Forest Fire Team,
• Michael Puscher as a member of the Medical and Support Unit, German Red Cross (DRK),
• Kim Knoll as deputy platoon leader of the Medical and Support Platoon, JUH,
• Jennifer Reck as leader of the 1st Medical Group, JUH,
• Tobias Siegert as leader of the 2nd Medical Group, German Red Cross (DRK),
• Frank Hübner as group leader of the Support Group, German Red Cross (DRK),
• David Kinder as a doctor in the Medical and Support Unit, DRK,
• Stefan Salich as platoon leader of the Water Rescue Platoon, DLRG,
• Daniel Merhof as deputy platoon leader of the Water Rescue Platoon, DLRG,
• Marcel Mäuselein as squad leader of the Water Rescue Unit, DLRG,
• Renee Warmbold as group leader of the water rescue group, DLRG,
• Björn Vollmers as group leader of the operational diving group, DLRG,
• Carsten Zenke as group leader of the Support, Transport, and Command Unit, DLRG, and
• Markus Tomaschek as Group Leader of the Patient Transport Unit, JUH

This was followed by the appointment of two local fire chiefs, one deputy local fire chief, and four deputy local fire chiefs. Klingebiel expressly thanked all fire department leaders for their vital volunteer work for the common good. He praised them, saying: “You, our volunteer comrades in the volunteer fire departments of Salzgitter, are ready 365 days a year, come rain or shine, to help us quickly in emergency situations. You do this voluntarily, in your free time, without pay, but with deep inner conviction. This is exemplary and deserves all of our respect. This applies even more to those among you who take on prominent leadership roles within the volunteer fire departments and thus bear an even greater time commitment in your volunteer work. At the same time, you are also role models in your local fire department and enjoy the trust of your entire team. We can see this, too, in the fact that your respective member assemblies have elected you to these leadership roles. The Salzgitter City Council also unanimously approved the nominations. I am proud to present you with your certificates of appointment today.”

The following individuals were appointed for a term of six years as honorary officials:

• Senior Fire Chief Anja Cammrad as deputy chief of the Lichtenberg local fire department,
• Senior Firefighter Markus Harry Wagner as acting deputy chief of the Salder Volunteer Fire Department,
• Fire Chief Michael Mönch as deputy chief of the Bad Volunteer Fire Department,
• Senior Fire Chief Matthias Ullrich as deputy chief of the Reppner Volunteer Fire Department,
• Senior Firefighter Christian Langner as deputy chief of the Lobmachtersen Volunteer Fire Department,
• Fire Captain Nico Heimlich as chief of the Lichtenberg Volunteer Fire Department, and
• Chief Firefighter Fabian Naue as chief of the Lobmachtersen Volunteer Fire Department