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Architects: J. Mayer H. Architects
- Year: 2019
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Photographs:David Franck
Text description provided by the architects. On May 3, 1969, the eight-year-old Björn Steiger was hit by a car. It took almost an hour for the ambulance to arrive. Fifty years ago, modern emergency services did not exist yet. Björn died on the way to the hospital.
After his death, his parents Ute and Siegfried Steiger founded the Björn Steiger Stiftung to improve emergency aid and to introduce a modern emergency response system. The death of Björn Steiger triggered many chan- ges in the German emergency system, including the introduction of nationwide emer- gency numbers 110/112, the introduction of ambulance services, the 24-hour emergen- cy doctor service, and the start of civilian air rescue.
The death of Björn Steiger marked the birth of Germany’s modern emergency services. J.MAYER.H was commissioned to design the memorial, which is located next to the site of the accident in Winnenden, Germany.
