Ceremonially unveiled: Eberswalde volunteer fire brigade receives new emergency vehicle
On the evening of 18 April 2026, the official handover of a new emergency vehicle took place at the Eberswalde volunteer fire brigade's equipment depot on Schneidemühlenweg. The deputy mayor of the city of Eberswalde, Maik Berendt, handed over a symbolic ignition key to fire chief Robert Beutler. This marked the official handover of the rescue fire fighting vehicle 10 (HLF 10) to the comrades of the city's largest volunteer fire brigade.
"By putting this modern vehicle into service, we are strengthening the safety of our citizens and increasing the general efficiency of our fire service throughout the city and beyond," said Maik Berendt in his welcoming address.
The members of the volunteer fire service came up with a special ceremony for the first presentation of the new vehicle. The previous emergency vehicle, an LF 16 TS 8/8 Cat, slowly pulled a large white cover from its successor. In this way, the new vehicle was ceremoniously unveiled and could be inspected by the guests for the first time.
With the HLF 10, the Eberswalde volunteer fire brigade will also be able to provide extended technical assistance in future. Previously, only the Finow and Sommerfelde volunteer fire brigades were equipped accordingly. The new emergency vehicle, which goes by the radio call sign Florian BAR 02/43-03, was procured through a state subsidy; the city's own contribution amounts to 336,000 euros.
Technical data and equipment of the HLF 10:
- Modern centrifugal fire pump with a flow rate of 1,000 l/min
- Water tank: 1,400 litres
- Chassis with a load capacity of 14 tonnes
- State-of-the-art safety and assistance systems
- Extensive equipment for heavy technical assistance, including modern battery-powered equipment (unique in Eberswalde to date)
- Additional equipment for fighting forest fires
- "Pump & Roll" function for extinguishing while driving
The HLF 10 succeeds the LF 16 TS 8/8 Kat, which has been in service with the Eberswalde fire brigade since 1994. The latter will serve the Finow volunteer fire brigade well until its well-deserved "retirement". It will temporarily replace the decommissioned SW 2000 hose reel. During its more than 30 years of service, the LF 16 TS 8/8 Kat was deployed (even) throughout Germany in forest fires and flood situations.
With the handover of the HLF 10, the city of Eberswalde is once again investing in the modernisation and operational readiness of its volunteer fire brigade, ultimately strengthening the safety of the entire region.