State fire festival

The little ones scored big in the performance competition

The jubilation at the Düns fire department knew no bounds.

(Bild: Land Vorarlberg/Mathis Fotografie)

The Vorarlberg State Fire Brigade Festival took place in Lauterach for the first time this year. The big highlight was the competition for the "Golden Helmet" on Saturday afternoon.

Almost 1600 firemen and women, from young to old, competed against each other in a friendly atmosphere at the 71st provincial fire department performance competition against the dignified backdrop of the Bruno Pezzey Stadium. And in the end it became clear once again: the size of a community says nothing about the performance of a local fire department association. The coveted "Golden Helmet" went to Düns, which has just 430 inhabitants, for the first time. It was followed by the Bregenzerwald local groups of Sibratsgfäll and Bezau.

A look at the historical list of the best also shows that the little ones often teach the big ones how to roll out a hose: the record winners are the Florianijünger from Au, who have won the "Golden Helmet" eleven times so far. They are followed by the Schnifis local fire department with eight titles, followed by the first large municipality, Lustenau (seven titles).

The balance of power among the youngsters was similar to that of the adults: The "Golden Fire Brigade Youth Helmet" was won by Silbertal, which is also known to be one of the small municipalities.

The young firefighters performed remarkably well.

(Bild: Land Vorarlberg/Mathis Fotografie)

"Maximum team spirit and professionalism"
Governor Markus Wallner and State Councillor for Security Christian Gantner (both ÖVP) were also impressed by the performance of the Ländle-Florianis. They were completely impressed by what they saw: "Our fire departments showed a high degree of team spirit, motivation and professionalism today. This is what characterizes our fire departments in the state," said Governor Markus Wallner, who was impressed. And Ganter added: "You can rely on our fire departments: they demonstrate their great skills and commitment in every operation and every exercise, thereby making a significant contribution to the high level of safety in our country."