Walking along the fire line

Nearly 800 metal plates in road surface as historical monument

The fire line of the bombing of Nijmegen plays an important role in the commemoration. Just like in recent years. The fire line is marked with nearly 800 metal plates bearing the names of the victims. Bregje Jaspers took the initiative for this visible reminder.

On the eve of the bombing, the people of Nijmegen were still full of dreams and hopes for the future, a day later the city lay in ruins and many lives and dreams had been destroyed. "It's bizarre when you think about it, the bombing really gripped me," says Bregje Jaspers. She is a designer and from that role she was involved in an exhibition around the bombing 10 years ago. "I saw a lot of historical photos and was touched by how the city used to look and what happened. When I walked through the city I saw those images in front of me, while many people hardly know this history."

Names of victims

She was eager to change that. "Nijmegen is scarred by the devastation. Of course you can see it when you look up at the reconstruction buildings. But I also wanted to make it visible in another way," Jaspers says. In 2014, she created a walking booklet that takes readers along the fire frontier. Soon after, the idea of marking the fire line with round, metal plaques with the names of those who perished was born. There were nearly 800 victims. It is important for the bereaved to be named.

Jaspers: "In placing the plaques on the line of the fire line, we tried to take into account where someone died, although that was not always possible. Near the station, for example, there were many victims, but only ten plaques were allowed there. The names of the people who died there can be found elsewhere in the city on the fire line." The metal plaques along the fire line now form a historical monument (Fire line024), showing the city's wartime pain. It explains why the city looks the way it does today. Jaspers himself still walks along the route regularly. "Sometimes pictures disappear or come loose. We fix that as best we can, of course."

The accompanying booklet is full of stories about the dramatic day. More than 10,000 copies have already been distributed, The project was created entirely with donations.

Brandgrens walk: singing, moment of hope

Zes jaar geleden werd voor het eerst de Brandgrenswandeling gehouden. Een idee van Rob Jaspers, om stil te staan bij het leven, de hoop en dromen van de slachtoffers. De Brandgrenswandeling wordt dit jaar weer gehouden, op 21 februari vanaf 18.15 uur, aan de vooravond van de officiële herdenking. Leden van het Gilde Nijmegen verzorgen korte wandelingen met uitleg. In de Molenstraatskerk worden door Nijmegen blijft in Beeld filmbeelden getoond van de pijn van de stad.
Op twee locaties langs de Brandgrens staan koren: in de Molenstraatskerk en bij monument De Schommel. Elk koor zingt circa 15 minuten. Samen stralen ze verbinding uit. Bij het monument, bij het stadhuis en nabij de fotowand van de slachtoffers, is vanaf circa 21.00 uur de afsluiting. Daar worden met lichtjes rond de Schommel alle slachtoffers herdacht.

Everyone is cordially invited to participate in the Brandgrens Walk.

Brandgrens hike

Datum vrijdag 22 februari
Plaats centrum Nijmegen, start Molenstraatkerk
Tijd Vanaf 18.15 uur
Entree gratis