Due to the risk of collapse, Swiss authorities evacuated about 300 people and their cattle from an alpine village due to the threat of a possible landslide.
The evacuation in the village of Blatten, in the Lötschental valley, was carried out swiftly since Saturday, as reported by Mayor Matthias Bellwald, who praised the solidarity of the community.
A total of 190 sheep, 26 cows, and about 20 rabbits were evacuated, including an injured cow named “Loni” that needed to be transported by helicopter on Tuesday. The spokesperson for the Lötschental crisis center, Jonas Jeitziner, provided these figures.
Environmental Risks Explained
Engineer Alban Brigger, a specialist in natural disasters, explained in a press conference that fog and clouds make it difficult to accurately assess the situation. However, an unstable mass of rock and a glacier remain causes for concern, especially due to the possibility that rockfalls could displace ice masses.
Authorities are unsure when residents and livestock will be able to return to their homes. Brigger noted that so far the “best-case scenario” has occurred, with several small landslide risks of mud instead of a large block of 1.5 million cubic meters.
This incident recalls the evacuation of the Swiss village Brienz in 2023, where a huge rock mass stopped just before reaching the settlement. Brienz was evacuated again last year due to the threat of another collapse.
In 2023 Swiss village evacuated due to risk of mountain collapse
A place that could soon disappear
“I wanted to go up one last time to say goodbye to my parents’ house. We don’t know if Brienz will still exist in two weeks,” said a woman who has lived in the area since childhood.
Visibly emotional, the Brienz resident explains that this departure is particularly difficult for her because for a long time she believed that the evacuation would not be necessary after all.
Risk of collapse with large rocks rolling down to the valley
In a meadow on the mountain, countless rocks the size of a cabin are scattered. At regular intervals, stones and small rock blocks roll down to the valley.
These landslides have intensified in recent weeks, said Christian Gartmann, communication officer for the municipality of Albula, in the canton of Graubünden, to which Brienz belongs, a village with records dating back to the 9th century.
