Viola Amherd impressed by damage in Ticino and Valais
Published: Monday, Jul 1st 2024, 16:40
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The day after the severe storms in the upper Maggia Valley and Valais, the extent of the destruction became apparent. Initial clean-up work began. President Viola Amherd visited both cantons and was impressed by the damage.
"You have pictures. But to see it up close is enormous," said Amherd on Monday morning during an inspection near Sierre VS. During her visit to the bridge destroyed by the Maggia near Cevio TI in the afternoon, Amherd spoke of "unbelievable destruction."
Amherd expressed her heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims on the short message platform X. Three people died in debris flows or floods in the upper Maggia Valley and one man in Saas-Grund VS at the weekend.
He is a 67-year-old German national, as the Valais cantonal police announced on Monday after formal identification. According to the investigations so far, he was in the basement of a hotel to retrieve personal belongings. He was surprised by the masses of water.
One person was still missing in the upper Maggia Valley on Monday. The authorities did not rule out further victims on Sunday. A 52-year-old man was also still being searched for in the Binntal valley in Valais.
Army begins relief work
Amherd said in the Maggia Valley that members of the army had already been deployed in Ticino from Monday afternoon. The federal government is also sending specialists to help build a temporary bridge as quickly as possible. This will ensure that the upper Maggia Valley is no longer cut off from the outside world.
After the bridge collapse at Cevio, the upper part of the Maggia Valley could only be reached by air.
However, Amherd explained that the stability of the ground on both sides of the Maggia must first be checked before the temporary bridge can be built. Once this had been done, a temporary bridge could be built "within a week".
According to André Mudry from the cantonal command body of the canton of Valais (KFO), around 50 members of the army were also to be deployed in this canton from Monday afternoon. In a first phase, they pumped out water in the Sierre region. Numerous people had been evacuated there on Sunday due to the rising flood waters.
Infrastructure is being repaired
On Monday, helicopters brought drinking water to six small villages in the upper Maggia Valley that had been without clean water since the thunderstorms. The cantonal police also set up three hotspots so that residents could reach someone in an emergency. The mobile phone network failed in many areas. Work was also carried out to restore the power grid.
In Valais, the A9 highway between Sion and Sierre was reopened to traffic on Monday afternoon. The Rhone had burst its banks there on Sunday and flooded the road. However, the Simplon and Nufenen passes as well as the road to Saas-Fee remained impassable.
The railroad line on the valley floor remained interrupted on Monday between Leuk and Gampel-Steg, which is why travelers had to switch to replacement buses. It should be reopened on Tuesday. The Matterhorn-Gotthard Railway lines between Visp and Täsch and between Fiesch and Oberwald were also interrupted. Replacement buses were in operation.
Still a "special situation" in Valais
The Valais management body lifted the flood alert for the Rhone and its tributaries on Monday morning. However, the State Council decided to maintain the "special situation". According to the KFO, this allows the canton of Valais to request the help of the army.
In addition to members of the army, around 700 firefighters and more than 250 civil defense personnel were deployed in Valais on Monday.
©Keystone/SDA
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