Bomb Blast in Ratingen: Report by VdF-NRW

In the morning of today, emergency service personnel from the fire department, police, and aid organizations were injured during a rescue operation in Ratingen, North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW). This unfortunate incident has shocked the Association of Fire Services in NRW, and the chairman of the association, Dr. Jan Heinisch, has expressed his deepest sympathy for the affected personnel, the fire department in Ratingen, the police, and all deployed rescue service personnel.

Dr. Heinisch, who is also the head of the fire department in Heiligenhaus, Ratingen's neighboring city, stated that hazards to emergency personnel are increasingly coming from or being caused by people. He emphasized the need for all parties to join forces to counter all attacks on emergency personnel.

The Association of Fire Services in NRW stands united with the injured and their families, and Dr. Heinisch expressed hope for a speedy and full recovery for the injured personnel. However, it is reassuring to note that there are no reports indicating that any firefighters in Ratingen have been seriously or critically injured, nor any mention of anyone in critical condition during the evening time. The only severe injury reported involved an 11-year-old child hit by a car, not a firefighter.

The incident in Ratingen has occurred at a time when the hearing on 'protecting emergency personnel' was taking place in the state parliament of North Rhine-Westphalia. A broad majority of the factions represented in the state parliament agree that all authorities must work together in matters concerning emergency personnel.

For press inquiries, Christoph Schöneborn can be contacted at the Association of Fire Services in NRW, located at Windhukstraße 8, 42277 Wuppertal. He can be reached via telephone at +49 1 70 2 21 80 32 or by email at [email protected]. The Association's website is http://www.vdf.nrw.

The statement was transmitted via news aktuell by the Association of Fire Services in NRW e.V. It is stated that every injured emergency personnel is one too many, and it is clear that the protection of emergency personnel is gaining importance throughout Germany.

Let us all remember to respect and support our brave emergency service personnel who risk their lives daily to keep us safe.