- After the storm in La Chaux-de-Fonds, the clean-up work resumed on Tuesday morning.
- The authorities urge caution outdoors.
- Around 200 households still have no electricity.
- One person was killed and around 40 injured in Monday’s storm, with peak gusts of over 200 km/h.
The night went well, said Daniel Favre, spokesman for the Neuchâtel police, on radio RTS in western Switzerland. Road traffic on the main axes can be guaranteed.
However, the train connections to Le Locle and Neuchâtel are still interrupted. In addition, many trees or damaged roofs are not yet secured. According to Favre, around 200 households currently have to get by without electricity.
Insurers expect extraordinary losses
Helvetia Insurance assumes damage in the low single-digit million range, as the company announced at the request of Keystone-SDA. Storm, hail and lightning are responsible for this.
In a storm of this magnitude, we face a different type of damage.
From the insurer’s point of view, the wind speeds of over 200 km/h and the “violence of the weather storm” were particularly noteworthy in the storm on Monday afternoon.
Scenes of devastation in La Chaux-de-Fonds
The insurance company Axa expects an initial assessment of the damage during the day. “The storm caused major damage to buildings, vehicles, household goods and life and limb. Vehicles were mainly damaged by fallen bricks and branches,” she said.
Other storms would mainly cause hail damage to cars, Axa explains. “However, in a storm of this magnitude, we face a different type of damage.