Heavy rain and flooding – masses of water threaten Ticino and the Glarner landslide area – News

  • In Biasca (TI), the fire brigade has been called out 30 times today due to flooding in cellars and basements.
  • The river Froda has swollen badly and needs to be monitored. If this bursts its banks, the adjacent industrial area will be flooded.
  • In Glarnerland, the potential for danger in the landslide area increases with the amount of rain. Because now the surface water is draining away.
  • According to SRF Meteo, the storms will last until Monday evening. Only in the north only moderate amounts of rain are expected to fall on Tuesday.

The area particularly affected by the heavy rains extends to Lodrino and Osogna, said a spokesman for the Biasca fire department. There are 50 firefighters on duty. In Malvaglia in Val Blenio, a road was also closed after a landslide.

    In addition to the Biasca region, the area around Locarno, the Valmaggia region, the Verzasca valley and the Riviera are also affected by the severe storms: There were severe hailstorms in Locarno on Friday evening.

Legend:

Lavertezzo

The water in the Verzasca Valley rises menacingly.

SRF Meteo eye witness/Benjamin Hohl

Graubünden and Glarnerland are also affected

There is also an exceptional amount of rain in the canton of Graubünden. As videos on social media show, the Hinterrhein in the Rofla Gorge currently carries a lot of water.

In the canton of Glarus, the situation around Schwanden is coming to a head. According to authorities, the ground was heavily swollen. In the slide area of ​​the Wagenrunse, the potential for danger is increasing because surface water is now draining off, the community management team said. Therefore, the complete closure and evacuation in the slide area of ​​the Wagenrunse will remain in place until at least next Tuesday afternoon.

Possibly more evacuations

The community management staff also did not rule out that the officially declared danger area would be expanded. As a precaution, he prepared the surrounding businesses and residents for a possible extended evacuation.

Last Monday, a landslide in Schwanden shifted a street, and the residents of five households had to be evacuated. The community had feared that another 15,000 to 20,000 cubic meters of earth and rock could slide down.

In Braunwald, Gyseneggstrasse has been closed and the residents of two adjacent houses have been evacuated. In this area, the grassland had already slipped on August 7, 2023 after heavy rainfall.

There is a risk of landslides and mudslides

Meteorologists had already warned on Saturday of storms and enormous amounts of rain in Ticino and Graubünden as well as in the mountainous areas of central and eastern Switzerland – in the south the continuous rain would also be intensified by thunderstorms.

There was a risk of sharp rises in the water levels of rivers and lakes, flooding of underground car parks or cellars, landslides and mudslides. Drainage systems and sewage systems could fail and road and rail traffic could be partially affected.

Drinking water polluted in some communities


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The rain also had an impact on the drinking water supply. Alertswiss warned of microbiological contamination. In the communities of Bodio and Maggia, tap water should not be drunk, the federal warning service tweeted. This was already the case in Brissago on Saturday. The water must be boiled before it can be used for drinking or in the kitchen.

Avoid banks and steep slopes

According to SRF Meteo, there will be 100 to 200 mm of rain in the affected areas from Saturday to Monday evening. In the south, 150 to locally even 300 mm are possible.

The federal government has recommended avoiding the banks of rivers and lakes as well as steep slopes. Because of possible debris flows, areas around streams in the mountains are currently very dangerous. Debris flows could break out without warning and would have “enormous potential for destruction”.

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