Drama in Vorarlberg: Fire brigade in large operations for several fires!

Drama in Vorarlberg: Fire brigade in large operations for several fires!

On the weekend of May 17th and 18th, 2025, several fires were reported in Vorarlberg, which resulted in a significant use of fire brigade and emergency services. On May 17th, at 3:23 p.m., the police in Bregenz were alerted due to smoke in Schlossergasse. The cause of the smoke development was a fire that started from an empty building. When the police arrived, the fire brigade was already employed with the extinguishing work. The fire could quickly be brought under control, but considerable damage was caused by the building. The cause of the fire is currently still unknown, which is why fire investigators of the State Criminal Police Office were consulted. A total of 100 firefighters from several volunteer fire departments were involved in this assignment, supported by the Red Cross with 15 rescue workers and 4 police forces.

Another fire occurred on the same day in Lustenau. At 4:25 p.m., a hollow tree trunk on Streuriedstraße caught fire. The Lustenau fire brigade was on site with 30 emergency services and 4 vehicles and was able to extinguish the fire before it could spread. Witnesses reported on young people who were seen nearby, while the police hired the search.

Two more incidents in Lustenau

On May 18 at 4:50 p.m., the fire brigade was alerted again, this time because of a surface fire in a forest in Lustenau, more precisely in the parcel of Vorsee. A glow fire that initially included approx. 5 m² quickly expanded to about 10 m². The Fire Brigade Lustenau was able to quickly extinguish the fire with 20 firefighters and 3 vehicles. Here, too, there is suspicion of arson by unknown perpetrators.

background of the fire statistics

In a larger context, it is important to capture the causes of fire and risks. The Center for Fire Statistics of the CFIF (CFS-CTIF) publishes reports on global fire statistics annually. The current report, which was published in 2023, analyzes data from 38 states and 26 major cities as well as causes of fire in 66 countries. The “100 Cities - 100 Years” project deals with the development of urban fire risks in the 20th century, especially under the influence of political, cultural and technical events.

Such information is crucial for the development of strategies to improve fire protection. The CTIF reports on trends and risks related to fires in urban centers, as well as the number of victims in the past 100 years. The data collected offer insights into the challenges that exist in dealing with fire phenomena in cities.

For further questions or information about the fires in Vorarlberg and the current fire statistics, interested readers can see the pages of ctif visit.