Fire in residential complex

Seven people rescued via turntable ladder

185 firefighters were deployed on Friday evening.(Bild: Mathis Fotografie)

Dramatic scenes unfolded around a residential complex in Feldkirch on Friday evening: after a fire broke out in an apartment on the first floor, the flames quickly spread to the stairwell. It was not possible for the people on the upper floors to escape outside. 

The residents of the apartment building have the numerous firefighters and an attentive neighbor to thank that nothing worse happened. After noticing the fire, the neighbor called the emergency services for help at around 8.50 pm. The people in the downstairs apartment, however, had not even noticed the fire.  

By the time the first firefighters had arrived, the rapidly spreading flames had already spread to the stairwell. Thick clouds of smoke billowed into the upper floors, where seven people were trapped.

By joining forces, the firefighters from Feldkirch Stadt, Tosters, Nofels, Altenstadt, Tisis, Götzis and Hohenems managed to rescue the trapped people from the building using turntable ladders. However, the residents did not survive the accident completely unscathed - twelve men and women had to be taken to the hospitals in Feldkirch, Dornbirn and Hohenems with injuries or suspected smoke inhalation. 

The fire department fought the fire both from the outside and the inside. The "fire out" signal was given at 21:25. The building is currently uninhabitable. Emergency accommodation was organized for the uninjured tenants and owners.

The cause of the fire is still unclear. Accordingly, the Vorarlberg State Office of Criminal Investigation has begun an investigation into the cause of the fire. In addition to the fire departments, which were deployed with 185 men, 71 rescue workers, two emergency doctors, the disaster train and the Feldkirch federal police and security guard were on site with 13 patrols.