Two children die tragically in an apartment fire in Gmünd

Two children die tragically in an apartment fire in Gmünd

In a tragic incident, a devastating house fire occurred in an apartment building in Gmünd, Lower Austria, on April 26, 2025. The fire was reported immediately, which resulted in several volunteer fire departments being alerted. The units included the fire departments from the city of Gmünd, Gmünd-Eibenstein, Gmünd-Breitensee, Waldenstein, Dietmanns, Hoheneich, Albrechts and the city of Schrems fire department. When the alarm was raised, there were already indications of missing people in the fire, as reported by fireworld.at.

The fire brigade immediately began fighting the fire and searching for the missing people. Tragically, two children were found in the apartment on fire. Despite intensive resuscitation measures, no signs of life were found in the children. Another person suffered serious injuries and was transported to a hospital by rescue helicopter. In addition, heavy smoke was recorded, which led to further rescue measures for other residents. They were rescued from the smoke-filled stairwell using an aerial rescue device and fire escape hoods.

Emergency services and rescue measures

In total, more than 100 fire department members were on duty. Five people were taken to nearby hospitals with suspected smoke poisoning. 16 members of the rescue service and 10 police officers provided valuable support on site. Medical and psychological care for the affected residents was provided by an acute team from Emergency Call Lower Austria, the crisis intervention team of the Red Cross of Lower Austria and a team of fire department peers. The identities of the deceased children have not yet been published, and details about the circumstances of the fire are not yet known, as noe.orf.at adds.

The cause of the fire is currently the subject of police investigations. The tragedy highlights the dangers associated with house fires and underlines the need for preventative fire safety measures. In this context, it is interesting to observe developments in the area of ​​fire protection. The CTIF Center for Fire Statistics regularly reports on fire risks worldwide. The current report analyzed trends over the last 100 years and further examined urban fire risks. This data is crucial to increase safety in urban areas and prevent similar incidents like the one in Gmünd, as suggested on ctif.org.