Austria in weather chaos: Almost everywhere in the country, citizens are battling with floods, snow masses and storms. The fire brigade is in constant operation.
Vienna – Early snowfall, storms and torrential rain: Austria is struggling with weather chaos. The situation has “intensified” especially in Lower Austria, said the spokesman for the regional command, Klaus Stebal, on Saturday morning, according to the Austrian news agency APA, about the flood alert and the unexpected onset of winter in Austria. The persistent rain caused damage throughout Austria and in the Czech Republic.
In the region, fire services have been called out to 160 operations since Friday evening, mainly due to storm damage. In the capital Vienna, the fire service has also had to complete 150 operations in the past 24 hours, mainly due to flooded cellars and broken branches. The severe storms and, above all, the persistent rain in Austria are an event of “the same magnitude as in the Ahr Valley.”
Winter onset and severe weather in Austria: Half a meter of fresh snow in Obertauern
In addition to the severe storms and the risk of flooding in Austria, the unexpected onset of winter occurred overnight. Half a meter of fresh snow fell in Obertauern. Snow fell above 1,400 meters, reports Today.at.
The wet snow causes many leafy trees to fall over. The winter service is in constant use. Even for the village of Obertauern, which is popular with skiers, snow is “unusually early at the end of September. Tourists are still there, actually summer tourism,” a local resident explains to extremeweather.tv. It usually snows here at the end of November. On Saturday the snow line is expected to be between 700 and 1,200 meters. The onset of winter in the mountains and a storm in the Austrian Alps had already caused some road closures and traffic disruptions on Friday.
In addition to the onset of winter in Austria: Flooding extent in the Alpine country is historic
The extent of the flooding in the Alpine country is historic. On the Danube in Austria, a flood lasting up to 30 years is expected, as APA further reported. On the Kamp River, a flood lasting up to 100 years is even expected.
On Friday evening, the first evacuations had already taken place in some communities. Garden settlements and second homes were affected. Mobile flood protection was set up in several communities, for example in the Wachau.
Winter onset and flooding in Austria: Sandbags ready for impending flooding
The situation will “come to a head” particularly along the Kamp, said Stebal, noting the onset of winter but also the threat of flooding in Austria. Two disaster relief teams have been called in, among other things to protect a substation. According to the fire service, the river has already overflowed its banks in low-lying areas. Roads have been closed. The “peak” in the water levels is expected to occur mostly overnight into Monday, Stebal continued.
Where the water has not yet risen but is expected, it is a game against time in Austria. Preparations for the predicted flood are still underway, said Christoph Firlinger from the Hadersdorf am Kamp fire department in the Krems-Land district. On Saturday, sandbags were filled so that they would be ready to hand in an emergency. “The flood protection in the municipality is designed for a 100-year event,” he said. The last “flood of the century” in Lower Austria was in August 2002 and June 2013.
Weather chaos with flood alert and onset of winter in Austria: Delays at Vienna Airport
Almost all federal states were affected by heavy rain or snowfall, the Chancellery said about the impending flooding and the early onset of winter in Austria. In Vienna, the situation was “still manageable” on Saturday, the fire department reported, according to APA. However, heavy rain and gusts of wind were expected during the course of the day. The Schönbrunn Palace Park was partially closed.
There were also delays at the capital’s airport in Schwechat due to the weather. Services on several railway lines were suspended on Saturday morning, as APA reported. This measure applies to regional bus services on the left bank of the Danube in the Wachau region from the end of operations on Saturday.
Onset of winter and flood drama in Austria: Böhse Onkelz concert in Upper Austria cancelled
According to APA, the fire department in Upper Austria and Salzburger Land said on Saturday morning that the region had so far gotten off lightly, although local flooding was expected due to the flooding in Austria. Despite this, a concert by the band Böhse Onkelz in Wels in Upper Austria, which was planned for Saturday, was cancelled, as were many other events. Here too, the fire department had to remove trees from the streets, pump out flooded cellars, set up flood protection and in Salzburg, vehicles had to be freed from the snow.
Holidaymakers should currently refrain from travelling to Austria. Due to the travel warning issued, the train restriction for all national, international and night train tickets purchased by September 12th has been lifted for the period from September 13th to 15th.
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