The bombing of Hamburg between 24 July and 3 August 1943 ("Operation Gomorrah") resulted in massive material destruction and unprecedented loss of life, estimated at nearly 40,000. Like all "Gauleiters", on 18 October 1944, Kaufmann was made commander of the "Volkssturm" in his Gau and began plans to defend the city. However on 3 April 1945 in a meeting at Hitler’s Berlin bunker, Kaufmann expressed doubt about the ability to defend the heavily damaged city and asked Hitler to declare Hamburg an open city. Hitler responded by relieving him as Reich Defense Commissioner for the German Bight. However on 2 May 1945, "Grossadmiral" Karl Dönitz who had been appointed "Reichspräsident" by Hitler before his suicide, agreed to surrender Hamburg without a fight. Accordingly, the military commander in Hamburg, "Generalmajor" Alwin Wolz, on 3 May surrendered the city to the British army which marched into Hamburg later that day. Kaufmann was arrested and interned on 4 May 1945. On route to being transferred to Nuremberg, he was involved in an auto accident resulting in a severe head injury which required a lengthy hospitalization.