Munich fire department in action: pigeon and fire discovered in server room!

Munich fire department in action: pigeon and fire discovered in server room!

The Munich fire department had its hands full last weekend, from September 5th to 7th, 2025. While the emergency services mastered a variety of challenges, the citizens of Munich can rely on the effective help of the fire department, whether in normal operations or in unplanned emergencies.

The fire department experienced a rather short but heroic adventure on Friday evening. At 8:13 p.m. the troops were called to the gas boiler of a residential building in Schwabing-West. An attentive resident had heard loud scratching and scratching since Wednesday and initially thought it was construction work. But when the noise didn't subside, she called the fire department. Despite several unsuccessful calls to the chimney sweep and plumber, the fire department set off. The firefighters on site were also surprised by the noises and noticed that something must have come out of the exhaust pipe. After dismantling the pipe, they finally discovered the cause: a pigeon that was stuck in the thermal baths. After an hour of wingless suffering, the pigeon was rescued and taken to emergency animal rescue. A truly unexpected twist!

Technical challenges on Saturday

Saturday brought much more serious challenges. At 6:31 p.m. there was a fire in a server room on Franz-Josef-Strauß-Ring, in the Altstadt-Lehel district. The cause was a burning uninterruptible power supply (UPS system), which was discovered by employees when they noticed smoke. When the fire brigade arrived, two fire alarms had already gone off in the basement and the smoke was clearly noticeable. The emergency services quickly got into the server room and extinguished the fire with a carbon dioxide fire extinguisher. To ensure the fire was completely extinguished, the affected facility was brought outdoors while high-performance fans ensured the smoke was cleared from the fire. The entire operation lasted about an hour, but the damage to property could not be quantified.

When fighting fires in electrical systems, such as the UPS in this case, quick action is required. The difficulty is that the system can often be live, which poses additional risks for the firefighters. Therefore, special safety precautions and the handling of such devices are strictly regulated in the fire department. According to DIN VDE 0132, it is necessary that comprehensive measures are taken to isolate the system in the event of a fire in order to ensure the safety of everyone involved. It is particularly important that the electricity can be switched off quickly and safely before extinguishing measures are taken. As the electrical practitioner reports, safety distances must be maintained, especially for live systems, in order to protect emergency services from electrical accidents.

The importance of safety in electrical systems

The operations of the Munich fire department once again illustrate the challenge associated with fighting fires in electrical systems. When responding to fires, action must be taken quickly, not only when fighting the fire, but also when it comes to the safety of firefighters. The study by Safe Fire Department highlights that systems that are not switched off are often exposed to mechanical damage, fire effects or extinguishing water, which further increases the danger. This makes training and regular instruction for emergency services all the more important to ensure that the right measures are taken to avoid danger. Ultimately, safety comes first and the protective measures when dealing with electrical systems must always be observed!

These days, both the skill and courage of the Munich fire department are in demand. Whether it's about freeing animals or fighting fires in technical systems, the emergency services show that they are always ready to help even in unforeseen situations - and that's a good thing!