BAUMHOLDER, Germany -- Firefighters from U.S. Army Garrison Rheinland-Pfalz Fire and Emergency Services deployed June 28-29 and again July 1 to provide mutual aid assistance during a major wildland fire near the village of Traisen, close to Bad Kreuznach.
The fire broke out during a record-breaking heatwave, with regional temperatures reaching 41.1 degrees Celsius(106 degrees Fahrenheit). The extreme heat fueled a fast-moving forest fire that triggered the immediate, complete evacuation of the entire village of Traisen.
The 24-hour operation integrated Army assets with local German emergency agencies under dangerous conditions. The fire broke out in a steep, inaccessible area adjacent to a former munitions disposal site, triggering explosions of unexploded ordnance buried in the soil.
Because of the danger of further detonations, direct ground-level firefighting was deemed too high-risk for personnel. USAG Rheinland-Pfalz’ Hook-37 integrated operations with the "SuperWolf-HR1," a specialized robotic tactical firefighting vehicle, providing a continuous water supply to the unmanned equipment as it engaged the fire in high-risk zones.
Germany’s Regional Disaster Management Agency issued the mutual aid request at 8:30 p.m. on June 28, roughly 30 hours after the wildfire initially began. The Baumholder Fire Alarm Communication Center immediately coordinated the response. Robert Womble, USAG Rheinland-Pfalz deputy fire chief, ordered the dispatch of an engine company from Baumholder Military Community and a 7,000-liter mobile water supply tender from Miesau Army Depot.
Twenty personnel deployed to the scene over the course of multiple days, under the command of Womble and Assistant Fire Chief Tobias Lang. Upon arrival, the units staged at a local commercial facility until assigned to the fire line, where crews worked continuously through the night.
To sustain the operation and ensure firefighter safety, leadership established a disciplined, eight-hour work-replace-rest cycle beginning at 8 a.m. Monday. Engine-52 was released early Monday morning, while the Hook-37 water tender remained on scene to conduct direct suppression and water shuttle operations.
Throughout the deployment, the garrison’s fire stations maintained continuous emergency protection, with backfill engine companies fully staffing both the Baumholder and Miesau fire stations.
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*Editor’s note:* This article was drafted with the assistance of generative AI. It was subsequently reviewed, edited, and fact-checked by USAG Rheinland-Pfalz public affairs to ensure accuracy, compliance with DoW security guidelines, and to reflect the appropriate tone.