An 18-year-old neighbor may have prevented worse things by acting quickly in a major fire in Waizenkirchen in Upper Austria.
A look out of the kitchen window around 7.30 p.m. prevented an even bigger fire disaster on Wednesday. “I looked outside, saw all the smoke and immediately knew it was bad,” says Paul Watzenböck in an interview with “Krone”. The 18-year-old HTL student discovered a fire in his neighbor’s garden in Waizenkirchen and responded immediately.
“I yelled for my mother, called the fire brigade and went to the building with my father,” he says. Everything went fast there. As the flames blazed all around, the animals (60 cattle and 12 calves) suddenly rushed out of the stable. “They were on the street, so we drove them away again,” says Paul.
The desperate farmer (54), who was also on site, then ran back into the barn. “He was afraid of his animals,” says the young helper. While he and his father escaped unharmed, the owner suffered burns and respiratory irritation. That is why he was taken to the Wels Clinic. His 87-year-old father was in the house at the time of the fire, but left it alone.
Twelve fire departments with more than 200 firefighters worked through the night to bring the blaze under control.
It was possible to prevent the flames from spreading to the residential wing and the entire service wing was destroyed in the devastating fire. What caused the fire is still under investigation.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
