An anti-bounce dampener assembly for dampening the closing impact force between vacuum interrupter contacts. The dampener assembly includes a dampening spring positioned within a contact adapter, a guide tube extending through the contact adapter and the spring, where the guide tube is coupled to a fixed contact stem, and a bolt extending through the guide tube and being rigidly secured to the fixed contact stem. An impact force caused when the vacuum interrupter contacts contact each other when the vacuum interrupter is closed causes the fixed contact stem, the guide tube, the bolt and the vacuum interrupter to move against the bias of the spring and dampen the impact force. A flexible strap is electrically coupled to the fixed contact stem and the contact adapter, and flexes when the stem moves so as to maintain electrical coupling between the fixed contact stem and the contact adapter.

A switching device has a commutation flow path, a first isolating gap, and a second isolating gap. The first isolating gap and the second isolating gap form an electrical series circuit which is arranged parallel to the commutation flow path. The second isolating gap has a first contact, a second contact, and a third contact. The first contact is a moving contact. The first contact is mounted movably along a switching axis from a first galvanic contacting position with the second contact to a second galvanic contacting position with the third contact. In the second contacting position, a mechanical contact force acts between the first contact and the third contact in a radial direction.