Reports of a malfunctioning fire alarm system in the new Tesla Giga Berlin factory in Grünheide caused a stir on Thursday. The Oder-Spree district sees the fire protection in the plant as secured.
The Tesla car factory in Grünheide (Oder-Spree) does not have a working fire alarm system. This was confirmed to the rbb on Thursday by the head of the construction and environmental department of the responsible district of Oder-Spree, Sascha Gehm (CDU). The "Märkische Oderzeitung" reported about it first. "According to our information, Tesla is working on putting them into operation," Gehm told rbb.
The good news is that Tesla is currently working on putting a functioning fire alarm system at Giga Berlin.
The authorities are aware that the fire alarm system and the sprinklers have not been in operation since the start of production, Gehm told the German Press Agency. Tesla is therefore working on the basis of a preliminary fire protection concept that has been approved by the authorities.
Fire guards and patrols on duty at Giga Berlin
Eight employees are on duty around the clock as fire guards and for patrols in the factory, and fire engines are also stationed at three locations in the hall.
"Fire protection is secured," said the head of construction and the environment. However, the automatic fire alarm system and the sprinklers distributed in the production hall should be put into operation as soon as possible. It was clear that a plant of this size would gradually be ramped up, says Gehm.
In 2012, the opening of the new major airport BER in Brandenburg was stopped because there had also been problems with the fire alarm system. The responsible district administrator had pulled the "rip cord" shortly before the opening.
Tesla has not yet commented. The Ministry of the Interior of the State of Brandenburg has so far rejected a statement on the grounds that it is not responsible for the matter and refers to the district.
Armen Hareyan is the founder and the Editor in Chief of Torque News. He founded TorqueNews.com in 2010, which since then has been publishing expert news and analysis about the automotive industry. He can be reached at Torque News Twitter, Facebok, Linkedin and Youtube.
