Severe Storms Keep Fire Brigades Busy in Several Federal States

In Salzburg, operations focused, according to the fire brigade, on the area along the Salzach river and adjacent city districts. Alongside fallen trees, flooded underground garages and streets were also the focus of the relief efforts. The professional fire brigade as well as several volunteer fire brigades worked, according to their own statements, well into the night to contain the damage and protect affected households.

Salzburg and Styria Also Affected

In Styria as well, particularly in the district of Südoststeiermark, roofs were torn off and streets were blocked by storm gusts. The Styria State Fire Brigade Command reported an elevated number of operations compared with comparable weather situations, without however specifying an exact total figure. Local power outages occurred in several municipalities because falling branches damaged power lines.

According to the Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics, the storm front moved across the national territory with partly hurricane-force gusts. Valley locations along river courses were particularly affected, where water quickly accumulated after heavy rainfall. Warnings of further storm gusts and local flooding remained in place on Thursday evening.

No Serious Injuries So Far

According to the current findings of the operation command centers, no one was seriously injured. In isolated cases, residents had to temporarily leave their homes because water had entered their living spaces. The fire brigades set up makeshift barriers in some municipalities and monitored critical sections of streams.

Cleanup Work Continues

The cleanup work is expected, according to the assessments of the operation command centers, to continue for several more days. Above all, uprooted trees on agricultural land and damaged roofs need to be secured and removed. The state fire brigade commands asked the population to avoid closed-off areas and to call the emergency number only in cases of acute danger.

Weather experts expect that local showers and thunderstorms may also occur in the coming days. The emergency services prepared for a sustained high level of strain and maintained on-call duty. Support also came from the rescue services and the Technical Relief Service (Technisches Hilfswerk), which provided water pumps and emergency power generators as needed.