A multi-million dollar fire station in western Germany burned down, along with 10 fire engines on the site, because it had no fire alarms installed. The new fire station in Stadtallendorf was hailed by the town’s newspaper as a “modern, state-of-the-art” building when it opened last year. Months later, firefighters found themselves in the embarrassing position of trying to put out a blaze at their own building. According to the newspaper, the fire station had not been fitted with fire alarms when it was constructed because it was classified as an equipment storage location, which doesn’t legally require the installation of fire alarms. “It’s a nightmare for a firefighter. No one wants to have to extinguish his own fire station,” said Lars Schafer, the district fire inspector. The fire caused an estimated $21 million in damages, including the loss of 10 fire engines. Some 170 firefighters, including local volunteers, were brought in to tackle the blaze, which involved flames that climbed as high as 30 feet. It was not immediately clear what started the fire, but local reports suggested it could have been a malfunctioning battery charger. The Hesse State Fire Brigade Association has called for an urgent review of the building regulations that allowed the station to be built without fire alarms.
