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Unterschleißheim (dpa / lby) - Bavaria's voluntary fire brigades have hardly been able to train new members due to the corona pandemic.

Nevertheless, the membership development is stable, said the chairman of the State Fire Brigade Association (LFV), Johann Eitzenberger.

"The pandemic slowed us down almost completely, we were virtually unable to train new members in 2020."

He hopes that in spring the number of infections will drop so that training can start again.

The already fully trained firefighters in the Free State are physically fit and well equipped for their missions, emphasized Eitzenberger.

In the summer and autumn, at least to a limited extent, exercise was possible again, and new forms of exercise were also considered to ensure protection against infection.

"The fire departments were very inventive."

The association has almost 7,300 voluntary brigades with more than 325,000 active members.

The association and the Ministry of the Interior regularly campaign for new fire fighters - for young people as well as migrants and people with disabilities.

"We have had a positive response to our campaigns," said Eitzenberger.

But since the first lockdown one had to tell interested parties that they could not be trained for the time being.

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The recruiting of members is a great effort, since young people in particular are in competition with sports clubs, for example.

“That is a great effort every year.

But by and large it works: The membership development is stable, we have no downturns. "

The head of the association does not believe that due to the empty coffers at the municipalities - caused by the Corona crisis - the fire brigades will also suffer and less money will be left for equipment: “I actually have no concerns.

Fire brigades are a compulsory municipal task, this is regulated by law. "

In addition to the voluntary fire brigades, there are a total of seven professional fire brigades in major cities in Bavaria.

The Ministry of the Interior also has 170 works and 50 works fire brigades.

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State Fire Brigade Association

Information on fire brigade training on the website of the Ministry of the Interior