Actually, the main task of the fire brigades at commercial airports is to put out fires if the worst comes to the worst. In Düsseldorf, however, the firefighters had to help sort the luggage because the proverbial “total chaos” broke out.
Not only have departing passengers at Düsseldorf Airport had to cope with extremely long queues at the check-in counters and in front of the security check for a few days now, arriving travelers have also been affected. Many did not get their suitcases delivered, because since Friday there have been repeated failures of the baggage conveyor system.
According to official information, it is said to be a computer problem. Around 1.000 pieces of luggage were left behind on Friday and Saturday alone, meaning that hundreds of arriving passengers had to leave the airport without their belongings. Since you no longer knew where to put all your suitcases, they were simply stacked next to the luggage belts.
So there was a huge “mountain of baggage” that had to be worked off. Because Düsseldorf is already suffering from an acute shortage of staff, the fire brigade was called in to help. In addition, employees from the airport administration are said to have lent a hand. The airport emphasizes that security was guaranteed at all times.
Unsurprisingly, the Verdi union sees a new low in this unusual fire service operation. An employee representative said, among other things, that Düsseldorf Airport had suffered serious damage to its image due to the debacle surrounding the start of the NRW holiday season. The works councils and Verdi have repeatedly warned the airport, the airlines, politicians and employers of the acute shortage of staff and the impending chaos. It would only have been appeased, so that the passengers virtually flew into a "chaos with an announcement".