Austrian water rescue
| Austrian Water Rescue (ÖWR) |
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|---|---|
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| legal form |
non-profit association ( ZVR : 268776696) |
| founding | March 16, 1957 in Linz / Danube |
| Seat |
Vienna , Austria
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| motto | "Ready for action at any time - ready for action at any time to save precious human life from wet death!" |
| main emphasis | Swimming training, water rescue , education |
| Chair | Heinrich Brandner |
| Website | www.owr.at |
The Austrian Water Rescue ( ÖWR ) is an aid organization active in water rescue .
The ÖWR is a non-profit , independent organization and generally works on a voluntary basis with volunteers. She is a member of the International Life Saving Federation (ILS), the International Life Saving Federation of Europe (ILS-E), as well as a member of the working group for the Austrian water rescue service and an extraordinary member of the federal sports organization .
The Austrian Water Rescue was re-established on March 16, 1957 in Linz / Danube and is an association whose activities extend to the entire federal territory of the Republic of Austria. The object of the ÖWR exclusively and directly creating and promoting all measures and facilities that are used to control and prevent the drowning, especially the information and training in swimming , lifesaving , the diving , the rescue diving , in performing rowing boats, motorboats , as well as the establishment and implementation of a water rescue and disaster relief service (ÖWRD).
The watchword of the ÖWR is: "Ready for action at any time - ready for action at any time to save precious human life from wet death!"
History of the ÖWR
From the founding years to the Second World War
As in many cities at the end of the 18th century, there were first attempts to set up an organized water rescue organization in Vienna. This, as well as an Austria-wide establishment of such an organization, stayed with the beginnings and only in 1922, based on the model of the German Life Rescue Society (DLRG), the Austrian Life Rescue Society (Ö.LRG) was founded hired again in 1927.
In the same year, the new lifeguard club in Vienna was established , which was transformed into the Austrian Lifeguard Club (ÖRSK) in 1933 and when Austria was annexed to Germany in 1938, it became part of the DLRG as the Ostmark Regional Association .
After the Second World War
With the end of the war and the regaining of state independence, the integration of the former ÖRSK into the DLRG also ended. An Austria-wide re-establishment of the ÖRSK failed and the agendas of the lifeguard training were taken over by the Arbeiter Samariter Bund of Austria (1948) and the Austrian Red Cross (1952), as well as in Carinthia by the Bavarian Water Rescue .
In addition to the activities of these organizations, local water rescue organizations were set up in some regions. Thus, in 1951 in Bregenz of Vorarlberg volunteer water rescue service established and in Hermagor from 1952 as part of the swimming club Hermagor (still using the DLRG badge conducted and Insignias) swimming and rescue swimming training.
The attempt to re-establish the ÖLRG in Innsbruck in 1955 failed again.
In 1956, a suggestion came from Germany, especially from the DLRG, to found a relevant specialist organization throughout Austria. The Vienna-based ÖRSK did not see itself in a position to do this and voluntarily dissolved itself on March 1, 1957 for the purpose of a later re-establishment.
Two weeks later, on March 16, 1957, the Austrian Water Rescue (ÖWR) was founded as a nationwide water rescue organization in Linz.
After the establishment in 1957
Unfortunately, hardly any documents are available from the early years of the ÖWR. The seat of the federal government (see structure) was initially defined as Salzburg , later in the mid-1970s it moved to Vienna.
As a consequence of the founding, the first water rescue schools (Hermagor, Salzburg) were set up in 1958 , where the first training courses were held.
1958 was also the year of admission of the ÖWR to the Fédération Internationale de Sauvetage aquatique (FIS, since 1984 International Life Saving Federation ILS), where the ÖWR also works intensively in various committees.
In the years after 1965, the ÖWR was structurally fundamentally restructured: from an association that administered nine areas to an umbrella organization of independent regional associations (federal management). This redesign ended with the founding of the ninth independent regional association, LV Burgenland in 1979.
After the establishment of uniform binding test guidelines for lifeguard courses in 1967 by the responsible ministry, the Austrian Water Rescue Service (ArGe ÖWRW) was founded throughout Austria , which is a coordinating body composed of various lifeguard training organizations and has to advise the responsible ministry. The chairmanship of the ArGe WRW alternates between the ÖWR, the ASBÖ and the ÖJRK .
Since 2007, the expression water rescue has been increasingly replaced by water rescue and anchored in the statutes of the respective organizational units.
The emergence of the extended departments
Diving
After a fatal accident of a professional diver (with a helmet diving device ), whom the diving ÖWR members who happened to be present could only rescue dead, the first federal diving warden was appointed in 1962. One of the first tasks was the drafting and implementation of uniform test and operational guidelines for diving in the environment of the ÖWR. The coordination seminar for the first ÖWR diving instructors in the future was held in Seeham in 1963 and the first diving courses were then issued.
Starting with this date, ÖWR operational divers and diving instructors have been trained since 1963 .
Running and white water
The increasing spread of river and white water sports canyoning , rafting and white water paddling as well as the increasing threat to populated areas from floods at the end of the last millennium was the trigger for the definition of this new subject area.
Training
Beginner and swimmer training
In its regional associations, the ÖWR trains children and young people as well as adults in some places in the basics of swimming according to its motto “Every non-swimmer is a swimmer”. As a member of the ArGe WRW, the ÖWR is able to issue state-recognized swimmer badges.
These swimming badges start with early swimmers (also known as penguins , without age restriction), through free swimmers ( from seven years of age) and speed swimmers (from nine years of age) to the highest level of swimmer training, the all-round swimmer (from eleven years of age).
A specific feature is the training level ÖWR youth swimmer 's license , which in terms of content represents something between swimmer and lifeguard training.
Lifeguard
"Every swimmer is a lifeguard" - according to this motto, the ÖWR trains lifeguard badges according to the ARGE ÖWRW. The first lifeguard license can be obtained from the age of 13 with the helper license . The basics of lifeguarding, the knowledge of self-rescue and simple rescue by others, the recovery methods as well as the water rescue-specific first aid are trained here. The rescue certificate can be obtained from the age of 16 . This differs from the helper's license primarily in the higher performance requirements. In addition, the graduates are prepared for their duties as service leaders for readiness and monitoring.
A rescue sport focus can be found in the lifesaver training. This training should cover the sporting area of lifeguarding and make it more attractive.
structure
Development of the federal management
The President, a maximum of three Vice-Presidents and the Federal Treasurer form the Presidium, which is the leading body.
| president | ||
| Up to three vice presidents | Federal Treasurer | |
| 9 country managers | FR for swimming and lifeguarding | FR for diving |
| FR for youth | FR for medicine | FR for nautical science |
| FR for material | FR for radio | FR for whitewater |
FR = subject specialist
Regional associations
Austrian water rescue consists of nine regional associations: Carinthia, Salzburg, Tyrol, Vienna, Lower Austria, Upper Austria, Styria, Vorarlberg and Burgenland.
