Bergwacht

The Bergwacht is an organisation that is part of the German Red Cross (DRK-Bergwacht), whose primary functions are mountain rescue and nature conservation.

The voluntary organisation provides over 90% of the emergency services in the impassable terrain of the German Central Upland and Alpine regions.

The objectives of the Bergwacht are multi-faceted: Save life: Nature conservation: The first German mountain rescue service existed in Saxony as early as 1912.

In 1955, the Bergwacht state associations joined forces at federal level to form a working group.

The Black Forest Mountain Rescue Service (Bergwacht Schwarzwald or BWS) has a special status.

Bergwacht unit treating a forestry worker
A Toyota Landcruiser and a VW Bus of the Black Forest Bergwacht
A Pinzgauer High-Mobility All-Terrain Vehicle of the Bergwacht in Mittenwald in the Bavarian Alpes, which is rarely used for this purpose in Germany