In 1836 the first Fire station was built at the Thie in Kirchohsen. In the period from 1836 to 1880 the fire protection was probably exercised by an obligatory fire-brigade.
In the year 1880 stout hearted citizens of Kirchohsen formed the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen under captain F. Blume with 40 active comrades.
Volunteer
Fire Brigade Kirchohsen shortly after the establishment in the year
1880
This was with a horse drawn hand powered pump made by the Louis Tidow Company provided by the Parish of Kirchohsen!
Hand
powered pump from the year 1880
On the 25th Anniversary in the year 1905 eleven founders were honoured.
Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen with 25
th
anniversary in the year 1905
In the year 1914 the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen asked for a climbing and a hose drying tower in the parish. This was not granted probably due to limited finances, the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen protested, by laying down its duties. The trouble did not as was expected die down after short time, but lasted the entire First World War until a major fire in the house Matthiesen. After these seven years of the protest the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen took up its duties again on the 3rd of April 1921 with now 82 members under captain Leppel and his deputy Krending.
In the year 1924 some musically interested firemen created the Music Corps of the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen likewise under captain Hermann Leppel. Wind instruments and a drum were financed by donations of the firemen and by collections in Kirchohsen.
Music
Corps of the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen in the year 1928
In a tragic accident in the year 1925 the Brigade lost its captain Hermann Leppel. His office was taken over by the comrade Karl Mueller. His deputy remained H. Krending.
With the 50th Anniversary in the year 1930 six founder members of the Fire Brigade Kirchohsen were still members of the fire brigade.
50
years Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen in the year 1930
After 54 years in the year 1934 the hand powered pump was sent into the retirement, and for the first time a portable motor powered pump was purchased.
In the year 1937 captain Karl Mueller was appointed as the County Fire Brigade leader. Friedrich Feldmann was elected to the post of local captain.
A new fire station was built in 1938 with the long desired hose drying tower.
The deputy Brigade commander comrade H. Krending retired in the year 1939 after 40 years of service from the active duty.
During the Second World War the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen was often tasked for duty in the state capital Hannover.
In the year 1946 the Brigade commander Friedrich Feldmann stepped down. The comrade Karl Sommermeyer was elected now to the new Brigade commander and the comrade Karl Beye to his deputy.
Comrade Ernst Gehrke died in the year 1948, he had been the secretary and treasurer since 1921.
In the year 1950 comrade Karl Sommermeyer was chosen to be the Brigade commander for the next six years. His deputy became the comrade Fritz Kreibaum. The title for the Brigade commanders changed from captain to fire chief.
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70
years of Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen in the year 1950
Music
Corps of the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen in the year 1950
In February of the year 1954 began a partnership, which exists until
today and is for both parties very useful. The County of
Hameln-Pyrmont built a County Hose Care Establishment in the grounds of
Reherstrasse 15 and the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen was from
now on situated in the premises of the County Hose Care
Establishment. At
the same time the Parish bought a fire engine for a crew of 9
(section vehicle) of the type LF 8 V 15. LF 8 is a vehicle with a 9
man crew and a pump rated at 800 litres a minute.
After that the former fire station of the Fire Brigade Kirchohsen
was used by the parish as administration building.
Delivery
of the new LF 8 V 15 in February 1954
In the year 1955 the Brigade celebrated its 75th anniversary and with this anniversary celebration it became the tradition to celebrate every fifth anniversary.
At the general assembly 1956 the comrade Karl Sommermeyer was appointed parish fire chief and he made his office available, his deputy stepped down as well. The comrade Hermann Feldmann was selected as new local fire chief the comrade Walter Bonhagen became his deputy.
With 80th Anniversary in the year 1960 the fire brigade received a TS 8 which replaced the 26 year old portable motor powered pump.
For reasons of age the comrade Karl Sommermeyer made his office available in the year 1965 as parish fire chief. His successor became with comrade Karl Coerdt also a member of the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen.
In the year 1966 the comrade Hermann Feldmann for health reasons laid down his office. His deputy Walter Bonhagen became the new fire chief and the comrade Richard Ringe was selected to be his deputy.
Crucial changes in the fire protection system particularly shaped the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen in this period, as we now held the responsibility to provide the CA breathing apparatus wearers for the County of Hameln-Pyrmont. This responsibility and many others were the fruits of the symbiosis with the County Hose Care Establishment brought with it.
In the interest of community spirit the fire brigade takes part in many friendly sporting competitions (football, shooting) with other clubs in the parish, this tradition still continues until today.
After 15 years service in the year 1969 the section vehicle LF 8 was becoming obsolete and was replaced by a new more modern vehicle.
To the 90th Anniversary we received a desperately needed personnel carrier from the parish.
In the year 1971 due the growth in the amount of technical equipment used by the fire service the County Hose Care Establishment was renamed the Fire Brigade Technical Centre
A further change in the command structure happen in the year 1974, when our deputy fire chief Richard Ringe stepped down and comrade Hermann Bleibaum replaced him. Since with the regional reorganization at the beginning of the 70's the independent local administration of some of the villages were combined into a large local administration area called Emmerthal. In the August of the year 1975 the County Fire Service support group, went to Eschede, to support other Brigades fighting massive heath fires. Eight comrades of the Fire Brigade Kirchohsen went with the support group.
Deployment
in the Lüneburger
Heide:
the TLF of the fire-brigade-technical center with comrades of the
Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen
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the
honored comrades of the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen
Because of illness our local fire chief Walter Bonhagen had to give up his post in the year 1976, the parish of Emmerthal Fire Brigade made him honoury local fire chief. His successor in the office of the local fire chief became comrade Klaus Bonhagen.
On the 19.4.1979 for the District of Emmerthal handed over to the
Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen a new section vehicle TLF 16/25.
This vehicle was to be able to deploy faster and gave our residents
a better protection from fire.
TLF 16/25 is a vehicle with a
6
man crew, a pump rated at 1600 litres a minute and has a tank with
2500 litres capacity.
Delivery
of the new TLF 16/25 in the year 1979
On 26.1.1980 the deputy local fire chief Hermann Bleibaum stepped down. His successor became the comrade Hans Jürgen Wolf.
In the year 1980 it finally happened. The Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen became 100 years old! This anniversary was celebrated to very great lengths.
On this occasion the District of Emmerthal gave us our first Deployment command vehicle ELW1 (They converted a used police van to fit their needs).
The parade to mark the occasion of the 100 years in existence of the
Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen
The members of the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen in the
anniversary year 1980
The
vehicle park of the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen in the
anniversary year 1980
A change in the way the fire brigades in the County of Hameln-Pyrmont are organized also happened in 1980, the establishment of a fire-brigade tasking centre (FEL). The tasking centre takes all emergency calls in the county, (112, medical/fire/accident) and dispatches appropriate units to the scene of the emergency. The phone number 112 is used nationwide for emergencies.
On the 24 October 1981 the command of the Fire Brigade Kirchohsen placed a request for a Turntable Ladder (DLK 23/12), the request was turned down on the grounds that Hameln (10 km) that has 2 vehicles of this type and Bad Pyrmont (13 km) are near enough to respond quickly if we need a ladder.
On the 28th May 1982 the Fire Brigade Kirchohsen celebrated the inauguration of the new social and classroom in the former fire brigade equipment building.
Unfortunately it is not possible to report only joyful events in the history of the Volunteer Fire Brigade, on the 1.12.1982 the after 58 years Music Corps was disbanded.
On the 24.8.1983 the Junior Fire Brigade was established with 19 members and the first trainer became the comrade Rolf Hüsing. The junior fire brigade is a very important part of the brigades work, it gives kids the chance to work together as a team to achieve a common goal and have fun as well. About a third of the members of the Junior Fire Brigade transfer at the Age of 16 to the active sections and are a major proportion of the new entries.
Establishment
of the Junior Fire Brigade Kirchohsen on 24 August 1983
On the 13.07.1985 with many friends, residents of Kirchohsen and
guests
the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen celebrated
their 105th Anniversary. For the first time the celebrations took
place in the grounds of the fire brigade technical centre (FTZ) in
Kirchohsen. The District of Emmerhal had procured a new section vehicle,
for the first time a LF 16/12
to replace the 16 year old LF 8.
LF 16/12 is a vehicle with a crew of 9, pump rated at 1600 litres a
minute and a tank with 1200 litres capacity.
Our vehicle has a larger tank with 1600 litres capacity.
Delivery
of a new LF 16 in the year 1985
LF
16 on
a
Mercedes 1222 AF
As the further high point of the partnership between Fire Brigade and fire brigade technical centre (FTZ) of the County of Hameln-Pyrmont a brand new extension to the existing garage complex of the FTZ was built, which became home for the vehicles of the Fire Brigade. The inauguration was on the 29.4.1987. In return our Fire Brigade agreed to man the special vehicles of the County of Hameln-Pyrmont and to take over all tasks for these vehicles are deployed to.
The
garages of the Fire Brigade Kirchohsen 1987-2005
In the same year the vehicle park of the fire brigade Kirchohsen was modernized again, our seven years old commad vehicle was replaced by a new command vehicle ELW 1.
ELW 1
On the 11.11.1987 at about 09.00 hours on the B83 between Grohnde and Hehlen a small truck had frontally collided with a long wood transporter. The small truck was loaded with barrels, which contained building foam and similar substances. Several of the barrels had burst and spilled there contents into the cab. The driver was completely encased in foam. While the rescue measures continued at full speed, the section commander noticed a HazMats symbol (the warning notices were not easily recognizable any longer) and ordered respiratory protection, but for some comrades this was already too late. The driver did not survive the accident, the section was occupied with salvaging the load, when suddenly 2 respirator carriers became unconscious. In all 11 comrades of the fire brigade were hospitalized.
To 3.6.1988 the Junior Fire Brigade Kirchohsen celebrated with many guests and friends their 5th anniversary.
In the year 1990 the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen celebrated their 110th Anniversary.
110th
Anniversary in 1990
On 13. May 1990 the Fire Brigade was called to an automatic fire alarm system of an industrial company. This was the first that the fire brigade had responded to this new system, since then we have had a lot of false alarms.
In the year 1990 fire fighting was no longer the main task of the fire services, the main operational area of the fire brigades had changed. So the Fire Brigade Kirchohsen had to orientate it self to the new situation. An environmental protection (HazMats) section was formed for more information use the button HazMats Platoon, and go to About us.
On the 07. 05 1994 we had the opportunity to present the fire brigade to the public, in the context of 40th Anniversary of the FTZ. Under the eyes of over 1000 spectators we work through the scenario severe traffic accident, occupants trapped. The high point was the landing of the rescue helicopter Red Cross Hameln 60-91.
40th
anniversary of the Fire Brigade Technical Center
Also in the year 1994 the environmental protection (HazMats) section had developed into a major force, under the direction of section commander Michael Ließ, and reinforced by comrades of the fire brigades Hagenohsen and Emmern became the environmental protection (HazMats) platoon of the County of Hameln-Pyrmont.
In January of 1998 the deputy local fire Chief Hans Jürgen Wolf stepped down, the comrade Michael Sczesni took over his post.
In the year 1999 the Section One of the Fire Brigade Kirchohsen with historical uniforms and the old Hand powered pump won under the command of Rolf Hüsing in a friendly competition organized by the Fire Brigade Lachem.
Historical
competition in Lachem
31.12.1999. To the millennium each district in the county had the fire service on stand by, because computer experts feared, that at the turn of the year massive computer crashes were a possibility. However no fire-brigade needed to be tasked for this.
In the September of 2000 the fire-brigade Kirchohsen celebrated its 120th anniversary with a celebration at the hose drying tower with a vehicle show and display exercises by the active comrades and the junior fire brigade. In the evening the garages of the fire-brigade Kirchohsen were used to have a great party.
In February 2001 the Local Fire Chief Klaus Bonhagen stepped down after 25-years in office. The Deputy Fire Chief Michael Sczesni became his successor, the comrade Kay Leinemann was selected to be new Deputy Fire Chief.
In April 2001 the fire-brigade Kirchohsen got lucky: RTL (television station) had chosen a traffic accident the fire brigade deployed to in 1997 to reneact for the TV reality-show NOTRUF. We work a whole day with the Production Company and 6 months later the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen appeared in front of a million public on the television!
Notruf-Set 2001
At the end of the year 2001 our former local fire chief Klaus Bonhagen was selected to be the District Fire Chief.
In May 2002 the fire brigade received a new command vehicle ELW 1, which replaced the 15 year old predecessor model.
Delivery
of the new ELW 1
ELW1
based
on a VOLKSWAGEN LT35
In the summer 2002 a part of the County Fire support group with members of our brigade deployed to the county of Lüchow Dannenberg to secure the dykes after severe flooding in the region.
Dyke
protection
on the Elbe
honoring
of the comrades wich took part in the task
On the 9.9.2002 fire brigades from the whole county, and also from neighbouring counties to the largest deployment in the history of the County Fire Service Hameln Pyrmont.
In the train station of Bad Münder two goods trains collided and a tanker containing the substance epichlorohydrin had exploded.
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In July 2003 comrades of the fire-brigade Kirchohsen had for the first time the chance to train an emergency at 400°C, when a fire simulation container came to the FTZ.
In August the fire brigade Kirchohsen was put on stand by, due to extremely hot weather period. 2 men were daily in readiness to deploy the tank wagon in case of a forest fire.
On the 23. August 2003 the Junior Fire Brigade celebrated its 20th Anniversary in the grounds of the FTZ with games for the youths, vehicle display and a disco in the evening! At this point in time more than 50% of the members of the active sections came from the Junior Fire Brigade.
In November after 24 years our section vehicle was replaced by a new TLF 16/25, which was procured by the District of Emmerthal, for this vehicle we also received technical assistance set of the newest generation.
Delivery
of the new TLF
TLF 16/25
based on Mercedes Atego 1325AF built by Fa. Schlingmann, Dissen
In December 2003 the local fire Chief Michael Sczesni stepped down for personal reasons, his deputy Kay Leinemann was selected to be the local fire chief. Comrade Michael Niehus became the new deputy local fire chief.
In February 2004 after 124 years of fire-brigade history Domenique Langhorst became the first female join one of the active sections.
In May 2004 with the 50th Anniversary of the fire-brigade-technical
centre (FTZ) started the construction of a new training centre from
which the fire brigade Kirchohsen should profit once more.
A new garage with four parking bays, two changing rooms and sanitary
areas including showers was built under the FTZ new classrooms.
inauguration on the 22. April 2005
Since the 23.05. 2005 we have had an internet site.
In August 2005 the compressed air breathing apparatus wearers of the fire brigade Kirchohsen were equipped for the first time with over trousers. The trousers with the over jackets, which were procured in the year 2000 complete our personal protection equipment.
On weekend
of 02-04.09 2005 we celebrated our 125th Anniversary
with an
extensive
celebration on the banks of the Weser in Kirchohsen.
It
was the largest celebration Kirchohsen had ever seen. The planning
took months however we had a strong partner at our side, the company
Meilenbrock
from Vinsebeck near Steinheim,
which carried out most of organization for the 3 days of our
festival. On Friday, 2 September the celebration began with a wreath
laying ceremony at the Petri church, after that we staged a Festival
Ball with the
party band “Dolce Vita”.
Saturday began with a vehicle display which was crowned in the
afternoon by a historical competition. In the evening the well-known
Top-40-Party-Band “Grace”
pulled the people to our party like a magnet.
On
Sunday morning we held a service which Pastor Klaus Kuhrmeyer and
Deacon Micheal Ließ organized wonderfully. This was followed by
a
parade
with all the Fire Brigades and most of the clubs in the District of
Emmerthal, after that we let the festivities close slowly to sounds
of the Music platoon Hagen.
Our festival was great success, maybe we´ll do it again in 25 years.
Towards the end of the year the renovation work on our new social and classrooms was completed. Under the leadership of our deputy platoon commander Kester Weitze in many hours of D I Y work we transformed the old classrooms of the FTZ a comfortable well equipped fire station.
Kirchohsen, in January 2006
deputy Fire Chief Michael Niehus
The past leaders of the Volunteer Fire Brigade Kirchohsen:
1880-1910 Hauptmann F. Blume
1910-1925 Hauptmann Hermann Leppel
1925-1937 Hauptmann Karl Müller
1937-1946 Hauptmann Friedrich Feldmann
1946-1956 Gemeindebrandmeister Karl Sommermeyer
1956-1966 Gemeindebrandmeister Hermann Feldmann
1966-1976 Gemeindebrandmeister Walter Bonhagen
1976-2001 Ortsbrandmeister Klaus Bonhagen
2001-2003 Ortsbrandmeister Michael Sczesni
2003-today Ortsbrandmeister Kay Leinemann