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Status: 03/30/2021 4:57 pm
A large fire destroyed much of the pig farming facility at Alt Tellin, near Jarmen (Vorpommern-Greifswald district). All the stables were burned. An employee was injured. Thousands, possibly tens of thousands, of animals died. MV Agriculture Minister Backhaus spoke of a tragedy.
The fire had not yet been extinguished in the afternoon. Smoke was still rising from the area, but the clouds were no longer as thick and black as they had been in the morning, when from a distance of 20 kilometers they could still be clearly seen moving for kilometers across the sky. Fire brigades and rescuers from across the region were still at the scene in the afternoon. The fire that broke out in the morning initially affected four stables, but around noon it spread to other parts of the facility. By afternoon, all 18 stables at the facility were said to have caught fire despite the large-scale firefighting operation. “We couldn’t think of the stables. That means the stables were completely burned down,” said Karsten Windmüller of the Jarmen Volunteer Fire Brigade. The fire is now under control.
“Animals ran wildly from side to side”
An employee was slightly injured in the fire. Sows and piglets kept in the stables were the most affected. It is not yet clear how many died in the flames. Emergency services assume that the majority, thousands, should be. A reporter for NDR 1 Radio MV described at noon how the helpers were busy pulling sows out of burning stables. “The rescued animals ran wildly around the company’s premises.”
Biogas plant is no longer in danger
The situation was still tense at noon because the wind had changed. The flames threatened to spread to an adjacent biogas plant. The fire department then cooled the system with water as a precaution. In the meantime, this danger has been avoided, he said in the afternoon. Over and over again, gusts of wind caused the flames to ignite. A listener to NDR 1 Radio MV from a neighboring town of Alt Tellins reported that it had rained on his ashes.
Millions of dollars in damages are feared
According to police, the cause of the fire and the amount of damage are still unclear, but initial estimates suggest it will hit the millions. Criminal police have already launched investigations into the cause of the fire, but officers at the scene of the fire are still unable to determine the fire. The fire department advised residents of surrounding cities, such as Neu Plötz and Wilhelminenthal, to keep windows and doors closed until further notice.
Backhaus speaks of tragedy and asks for consequences
The Minister of Agriculture of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Till Backhaus (SPD), spoke of a tragedy. “As far as we know, there are around 9,000 sows and around 50,000 piglets in the facility. You cannot imagine the suffering of the animals in a fire like this,” the minister explained. Everyone who protested against this “piglet factory” when it was built now looks to the right. Nor does he want such large systems, they do not fit the time or the country. “The legislative side must act so that such tragedies are not repeated over and over again. I remind you that we only recently had a major fire in Kobrow that killed hundreds of animals,” Backhaus said.
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One of the largest breeding facilities in northern Germany.
The operation at Alt Tellin had already made headlines in 2019 due to a faulty ventilation system. At that time, more than 1,000 pigs died. The affected sow and piglet farming facility was highly controversial for years and belongs to one of Germany’s largest pig farming operations – Landwirtschaftliche Ferkelzucht Deutschland (LFD) Holding, which was acquired by Switzerland’s Terra Grundwerte AG in 2020. According to previous information, the facility has space for 10,000 sows and 35,000 piglets.
Criticisms of the Deputy Mayor of Daberkow
Criticism of the approval authorities rose from the neighboring community of Daberkow. “This system should not have been approved due to the size of the fire protection,” said Deputy Mayor Thomas Kröchert. It’s a shame animals have to die for it. Kröchert is a farmer and cultivates land in the immediate vicinity. It’s not about preventing pig farming in general, the rancher said. Only the size of the piglet rearing facility, which is near Daberkow, is not acceptable. “Most of the effects, such as constant manure and the transport of animals, have to be borne by neighboring towns.”
BUND: “He looked away for too long”
On the left, the Greens and environmental and animal welfare associations called for new guidance in planning animal husbandry systems. “These large animal husbandry and fattening facilities may no longer be licensed or operated,” said left-wing regional parliamentarian Jeannine Rösler. The reasons are fire protection problems, but also the protection of animals and the environment. The German Federation for the Environment and Nature Conservation (BUND) demanded that the permit for the “gigantic, cruel to animals and toxic to the environment facility” at Alt Tellin be revoked. The fire shows that people have looked the other way for too long.
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