CGDIS firefighting robot;
Credit: CGDIS
On Tuesday 18 August 2026, Luxembourg's Grand Ducal Fire and Rescue Corps (CGDIS) announced that it had deployed firefighters and its firefighting robot to Illingen in Germany's Saarland region following a major forest fire.
According to the CGDIS, the fire mobilised around 300 German firefighters for several hours. Although the blaze has been under control since Monday, work to extinguish remaining hotspots is continuing.
The German authorities requested assistance from the CGDIS to tackle an area where ammunition may be buried in the ground. Luxembourg consequently deployed its firefighting robot, allowing operations to be carried out in the potentially dangerous area.
A team of four Luxembourg firefighters left for Germany on the evening of Monday 17 August 2026 with the robot and a fire engine. After working throughout the night, a six-member team took over on Tuesday, with the mission expected to conclude same evening.
Luxembourg's Minister for Home Affairs, Léon Gloden, commented: “Cross-border cooperation once again demonstrates its importance here, and I was able to assure Reinhold Jost, Minister of the Interior, Building and Sport of the State of Saarland, of our support by making available to our German neighbours equipment suited to the circumstances, as well as experienced CGDIS firefighters.”
