Vienna, Austria's capital and a federal state in its own right (pop. 2,042,036 on January 1, 2026, preliminary), is protected by a professional fire brigade run by the city as Municipal Department 68. Its 1,622 operational staff (2025) work from 24 stations: nine fire-protection sections plus dedicated stations at City Hall and the AKH hospital. Two volunteer brigades in Donaustadt, Breitenlee and Süßenbrunn, are alerted by the same control center. In 2025 the brigade answered 43,365 call-outs, about 118 a day. The national association counts 40 brigades in Vienna, including company brigades. In an emergency, dial 122 (fire) or 112.
Vienna Fire Brigade (MA 68) office (non-emergency)
+43 1 53199-0- Stadt Wien – Feuerwehr und Katastrophenschutz (MA 68), Am Hof 9–10, 1010 Vienna, Austria
- Office: Mon–Fri 8:00–14:00 (CET); in-person visits by appointment only
- wien.gv.at/feuerwehr · email post@ma68.wien.gv.at
- Emergency: fire 122 · ambulance 144 · EU emergency number 112
How Fire Protection Is Organized in Vienna
Vienna is the only Austrian state where a professional brigade, the Berufsfeuerwehr Wien, covers the whole territory. It is part of the city administration as Magistratsabteilung 68 – Feuerwehr und Katastrophenschutz (fire and disaster protection), and the city calls it the world's oldest professional fire brigade. Its 415 km² service area is split into nine Brandschutzsektionen (fire-protection sections), each with one Hauptfeuerwache (main station) and up to two smaller satellite stations (Zugswache or Gruppenwache). City Hall and the AKH general hospital form two extra sections with their own stations.
The Zentralfeuerwache (central station) Am Hof in the 1st district houses the fire directorate and the Nachrichtenzentrale (control center), with about 100 staff on 24-hour duty. Two Freiwillige Feuerwehren (volunteer brigades) remain, in Breitenlee and Süßenbrunn, each with about 30 active members; the city supplies their vehicles. Company brigades (Betriebsfeuerwehren) protect single businesses and are not public brigades; since a 2025 amendment of the Vienna Fire Brigade Act they are registered, and the Wiener Landesfeuerwehrverband (state fire brigade association) is informed. Recruits complete 105 days of basic training in firefighting, technical rescue and hazmat; the Feuerwehrausbildungszentrum (training center) with a training fire house is at the Floridsdorf main station.
Fire Stations by Section & District
| Section | Station | Address | District |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | Zentralfeuerwache Am Hof; Zugswache Landstraße | Am Hof 7–10; Baumgasse 89 | 1st Innere Stadt; 3rd Landstraße |
| II | HFW Leopoldstadt; GW Kaisermühlen | Vorgartenstraße 223C; Wallenberggasse 4 | 2nd Leopoldstadt; 22nd Donaustadt |
| III | HFW Favoriten; ZW Simmering; GW Rudolfshügel | Sonnwendgasse 14; Florian-Hedorfer-Straße 6; Stefan-Fadinger-Platz 37 | 10th Favoriten; 11th Simmering; 10th Favoriten |
| IV | HFW Mariahilf; GW Penzing; GW Weidlingau | Gumpendorfer Gürtel 2; Nisselgasse 14; Mühlbergstraße 6 | 6th Mariahilf; 14th Penzing (both) |
| V | HFW Hernals; GW Steinhof | Johann-Nepomuk-Berger-Platz 12; Johann-Staud-Straße 75 | 17th Hernals; 16th Ottakring |
| VI | HFW Döbling; GW Grinzing; GW Neustift am Walde | Würthgasse 5–9; Cobenzlgasse 63; Rathstraße 37 | 19th Döbling (all three) |
| VII | HFW Floridsdorf; GW Am Spitz; GW Strebersdorf | Josef-Brazdovics-Straße 4; Weisselgasse 3; Strebersdorfer Platz 1 | 21st Floridsdorf (all three) |
| VIII | HFW Donaustadt | Erzherzog-Karl-Straße 170 | 22nd Donaustadt |
| IX | HFW Liesing; GW Altmannsdorf; GW Speising | Siebenhirtenstraße 8–10; Rothenburgstraße 1; Speisinger Straße 36 | 23rd Liesing; 12th Meidling; 13th Hietzing |
| X | Wache Rathaus (City Hall) | Rathaus, 1010 Vienna | 1st Innere Stadt |
| XI | Feuerwache AKH (hospital) | Not published | 9th Alsergrund (AKH site) |
| Volunteer | FF Breitenlee; FF Süßenbrunn | Not published | 22nd Donaustadt |
HFW = Hauptfeuerwache, ZW = Zugswache, GW = Gruppenwache. A station's location can differ from its organizational section (Landstraße lies in Section II's area). No station phones are published; use the MA 68 office.
Special Units & Capabilities
- Diving and water rescue: the Leopoldstadt main station has its own diving pool, a water-service workshop and boat berths; a dive team and diving vehicle are based at Kaisermühlen on the Danube.
- Hazmat: a hazardous-substances service with special measuring devices; decontamination and spill units at Liesing, an environmental measurement vehicle at Donaustadt and a radiation early-warning station at Rudolfshügel.
- Heavy rescue: crane vehicles at Landstraße and Floridsdorf, a heavy-duty tow truck at Landstraße, heavy-tools and building-collapse units at Hernals.
- Height rescue: a rope-rescue specialty, telescopic mast platforms at Döbling and Floridsdorf and an aerial ladder at Liesing; Döbling has a six-story training tower.
- Disaster relief (Katastrophenhilfsdienst): a rescue-dog unit and acoustic search team; a base at Am Spitz.
- Other: drone pilots, boat operators, fire-service beekeepers, inspection chimney sweeps.
- Diving
- Water rescue
- Hazmat
- Heavy rescue
- Height rescue
- Rescue dogs
- Drones
Estimated Response Time
BF Wien's 24 stations share 414.9 km², so the average distance to the nearest station is r ≈ √(414.9 ÷ (24 × π)) ≈ 2.3 km (1.5 mi); leaving out the City Hall and AKH stations gives about 2.5 km. With about 4,920 residents per km² Vienna is urban and fully professional, so we use the career column of our baseline table. The city pages we checked publish no response-time target or average.
| Radius | Vienna (career) |
|---|---|
| ≤ 2.4 km | 4–6 min |
| 2.4–4.8 km | 6–8 min |
| 4.8–9.7 km | 8–11 min |
| > 9.7 km | 11+ min |
Typical expectation: about 4–6 minutes in the built-up city, and about 6–8 minutes on the edges, such as the Vienna Woods and the fields of northern Floridsdorf and Donaustadt.
Estimated Fire Control Time
| Fire size | Example | Indicative time |
|---|---|---|
| Small | Waste container, small vehicle, balcony | 5–20 min |
| Medium | Apartment room-and-contents, car fully involved | 15–45 min |
| Large | Attic or roof fire, commercial unit | 45–120 min |
| Major | Multi-alarm, high-rise, industrial or forest fire | 2–12+ hours |
No Vienna-specific control times are published. Attic fires in older apartment blocks and forest fires in the Vienna Woods tend toward the upper end of each range.
Call-outs & Statistics
- 2025: 43,365 call-outs, about 118 a day or one every 8 minutes, slightly fewer than in 2024 (2024 total not published). Shares: fires 35%, technical 30%, rescue of people and animals 22%, traffic 11%, hazmat 2%.
- 2023: about 43,000 call-outs.
- 2025: 1,622 operational staff; six new all-terrain fire engines; new Süßenbrunn volunteer station.
- Volunteer brigades: Breitenlee about 150 call-outs a year, Süßenbrunn about 50.
- Austria-wide in 2025: 4,752 brigades (4,438 volunteer, 308 company, 6 professional), 357,187 members and 254,598 call-outs.
Outdoor burning and forest fires: The federal Clean Air Act (Bundesluftreinhaltegesetz) generally bans burning plant material in the open. Vienna's exemption ordinance allows only narrow exceptions, such as frost-protection smudging in orchards and vineyards; compost or use the organic-waste bin instead. Barbecues in private gardens are generally allowed (leases and house rules may forbid them). In 2026 the city banned all fire and smoking in and near forests from May 7 until further notice, including grilling at public barbecue areas; it is lifted only after lasting rain. Ask the city (Magistrat) before burning anything.
Neighboring States & Countries
- Lower Austria
FAQ
What is the non-emergency number for the fire brigade in Vienna?
The MA 68 office (Feuerwehr und Katastrophenschutz): +43 1 53199-0, Mon–Fri 8:00–14:00. In an emergency, dial 122 or 112.
How many fire stations does Vienna have?
26: 24 professional stations (nine sections plus the City Hall and AKH stations) and 2 volunteer stations in Breitenlee and Süßenbrunn.
Does Vienna have volunteer fire brigades?
Yes, two, Breitenlee and Süßenbrunn in Donaustadt, with about 30 active members each. All other public fire protection is professional.
How fast does the fire brigade respond in Vienna?
About 4–6 minutes in the built-up city and about 6–8 minutes on the outskirts, by our estimate. The city publishes no official target.
Can I burn garden waste in Vienna?
Generally no. Federal law bans open burning of plant material, and Vienna allows only narrow exceptions. Compost it or use the organic-waste bin.
Last verified:
- Stadt Wien — MA 68 contact, organization
- Stadt Wien — Fire stations in Vienna and its 11 linked section pages (e.g. Section I)
- Stadt Wien — Call-out statistics 2025
- Stadt Wien — MA 68 performance report 2025
- Stadt Wien — Special areas, training
- Stadt Wien — Volunteer fire brigades in Vienna
- Vienna Fire Brigade Act amendment, LGBl. Nr. 43/2025 (company brigades)
- Österreichischer Bundesfeuerwehrverband — Statistics 2025
- Statistik Austria — Population Jan 1, 2026 (preliminary)
- City of Vienna — Vienna in Figures 2026 (area)
- RIS — Vienna exemptions from the ban on burning biogenic materials
- Stadt Wien — Forest-fire danger and grilling ban 2026, grilling rules