Litvínov-based corporate firefighters from the ORLEN Unipetrol Group have donated a historic Mercedes-Benz-Silvani KHA 60 fire engine from 1990 to the Fire Protection Museum in Zbiroh. It had served for many years in the fleet of the Fire Rescue Unit of the chemical production plant. The ceremonial handover of the historic vehicle was attended by the corporate firefighters and representatives of the museum in Zbiroh.
“We are very happy that we could hand over our firefighting legend to the museum in Zbiroh and add it to the collection of firefighting equipment. The Mercedes-Benz-Silvani KHA 60 was manufactured in 1990 and reliably served our fire rescue unit,” said Petr Králert, chief of the fire rescue unit, to the ceremonial handover of the equipment. “Despite its not very ideal driving properties, which presented themselves by incorrect turning because of an unevenly distributed load on the axle – and not only in the snow and on ice – the KHA earned its very good name in November 1996 when fighting a fire at the filling station and EFG fuel stations at the Litvínov site. Because of the built-in pump’s output, a high volume of stored extinguishing foam and a monitor’s range, it made a fundamental contribution to preventing the fire from spreading.”
ORLEN Unipetrol firefighters showed their relationship with and respect for this unique vehicle during the general overhaul of the corroded superstructure and cabin, performed between July 2012 and March 2013. During the overhaul, they demonstrated their craftsmanship and technical skills. In 2015 and 2016, repairs were done on the engine, the injection pump and the dividing wall between the foam and water tanks. As a result of these extensive repairs, the vehicle was still deployable.
In August 2015, it was again the first intervention vehicle that arrived on site of the incident at the steam cracker at the Litvínov complex. The “Old Codger”, as the corporate firefighters call it, was thus involved in extinguishing the two largest industrial fires in the Czech Republic.
“ORLEN Unipetrol deserves a big thank-you for their donation of the Mercedes-Benz KHA 60 fire engine for our fire protection exposition. The vehicle is unique and one of a kind, and our visitors will be very excited about it. There are several museums exhibiting fire protection equipment, but people will not see such a unique exhibit at any other museum,” explained Jiří Vinklárek, curator of the fire protection exposition collections in Zbiroh.
The “Old Codger” was replaced by a new KHA 60 vehicle with an HRET turret by ROSENBAUER during the autumn of 2020. Between February 2021 and April 2022, it was listed as a backup vehicle for the ORLEN Unipetrol fire rescue unit.
The ORLEN Unipetrol Group is the largest refining and petrochemical company in the Czech Republic. It focuses on crude oil processing and the production, distribution and sale of vehicle fuels and petrochemical products – particularly plastics and fertilisers. It belongs among the critical players in the Czech and Central European markets in all these areas. The ORLEN Unipetrol Group encompasses refineries and production plants in Litvínov and Kralupy nad Vltavou, Paramo in Pardubice, Spolana in Neratovice, and two research centres in Litvínov and Brno. Unipetrol also includes a network of ORLEN Benzina filling stations in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. With 427 filling stations, ORLEN Benzina is the largest chain in the Czech Republic. Since its entry in 2019 to Slovakia, ORLEN Benzina has been one of the fastest-growing chains and currently has 24 stations in its network. ORLEN Unipetrol employs almost 5,000 people and is one of the largest companies in the Czech Republic. In 2005, ORLEN Unipetrol became a member of the ORLEN Group, the largest crude oil processor in Central Europe. The ORLEN Unipetrol is also active in corporate social responsibility. Therefore, it pays equal attention to initiatives that cultivate and support sustainable development, education, local communities, and the environment.