Over the past year, the number of working hours at the local fire brigade has increased significantly again. The largest increase occurred in so-called major loss events. Also the proportion of women among the 906 above. The number of fire brigades continues to grow strongly, currently around ten percent.
The 906 Upper Austrian fire brigades carried out a total of 59,751 missions in 2023. Although this is not a record, it is an increase of more than 11,000 missions compared to 2022. The working hours of our Florianis also increased by about 20 percent last year to no less than 7.55 million hours. This is evident from the 2023 annual balance sheet of the State Fire Brigade Association, which was presented in Linz on Wednesday.
Only nine percent ‘visible’
Of these 7.55 million working hours, only 716,825, or nine percent, are spent on missions. The rest is ‘invisible’ to the public: services, maintenance, training and further training, raising own resources or youth work make up the remaining 91 percent.
December is the strongest month
Domestic fire brigades were alerted most often in December: 9,509 missions were carried out, almost twice as many as in the second busiest month. This was due to both the heavy snowfall at the beginning of the month and the storm front “Zoltan” shortly before Christmas. In the three days before Christmas Eve alone, approximately 9,000 Florianis were on site for more than 2,100 missions.
The share of women is increasing
Although the number of active members fell by around 850 people last year, the share of women is higher than ever: Upper Austria’s fire brigades currently have 9,802 female members, an increase of 183 percent compared to 2009. The guards are prepared: the fire brigade station guidelines provide, among other things, for separate sanitary facilities and changing areas.
No trend in disruptions
“An increase in the number of attacks or disruptions to fire brigade work is not really noticeable,” said fire brigade chairman Robert Mayer. Fortunately, these are only isolated cases, but they would still have a negative effect on morale, especially among volunteers.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
