German firefighters from Emmendingen, a twinning town to Newark visited the town to celebrate 40 years of twinning

German firefighters visited Newark to mark 40 years of twinning between towns.

Newark is twinned with three towns, including Emmendingen, a town in Germany. The twinning was established in 1983 by Newark Town Council.

As part of the anniversary celebrations, a group of firefighters from Emmendingen visited Newark for a long weekend, including a day at the fire station with the red watch.

During the visit, they had a tour of the fire station, fire engines and the Specialist Rescue Unit, as well as having the opportunity to ask any questions they may have about how a UK fire service runs and operates.

Nottinghamshire firefighters had the chance to ask questions about what it is like to be a firefighter in Germany.

The leader of Emmendingen Fire Station, Alex Zahn, said: “We had a wonderful time at Newark Fire Station. We had good discussions about the differences between our work and the hope to have a regular exchange.

“We were happy to meet everyone, and we look forward to hopefully welcoming our new friends next year in Emmendingen.”

Emmendingen Fire Station is operated by around 180 firefighters on a voluntary basis.

The same principle as Newark’s On-Call Firefighters, but they don’t get paid for their service. Their fire station has 11 response vehicles, and they’re trained in special rescue, which includes rescuing from heights, water, and animal rescue.

Watch manager Keil Fraser, from Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service, said: “It was an absolute pleasure to welcome the firefighters onto the station, it was a great opportunity to meet others in the job and understand the similarities and differences between services and culture.
“It was eye-opening to learn about how Emmendingen Fire Station run, especially on a voluntary basis.

“They explained that here in the UK we have more advanced technology when it comes to helping us in our role as a firefighter, which shocked us, as this equipment is what we use to save lives.”

The Newark Twinning Association is a non-political, self-funding initiative to encourage and facilitate goodwill, understanding and friendship between organisations and individuals within the twinned towns.

Rita Crowe, chairman of the Twinning Association said she was delighted to help arrange the visit as it had been delayed since the pandemic.

She added: “A link had been established between the two stations during the early days of Twinning, which sadly had ceased, and it's only through the links with groups such as this that help the successful link between the two towns survive."