A 3,000 cubic meter block broke loose in Steyr, thundered down, buried two workers and just missed a housing estate. Work after the tragedy took several days, the police imposed an official parking ban.
Horror scenes took place on Wednesday morning in the immediate vicinity of Steyr’s famous Christkindl district. Over the past two weeks, urgently needed security work has been carried out in the conglomerate wall in Unterhimmel. The plan was to remove the “problem stone”, which was objected to two years ago, piece by piece and in a targeted way – as Mayor Markus Vogl explains in the interview below.
Size not foreseeable in the beginning
However, this project ended in tragedy for two excavator drivers (aged 31 and 64) from Carinthia on Wednesday. At 10:20 a.m., the emergency services were alerted. The full size was unforeseeable at first. “We were alerted with the radio message ‘accident at work, excavator involved’. Two patrols were immediately on the scene and declared it to be a large stone fall. Then the other troops were alerted again,” said Christian Moser, Steyr City Police Commander.
workers buried under stones
One of the workers had scraped off the rock in the upper part, the second had dug out the overburden underneath. A 3,000-cubic-foot rock broke loose, dragging the top excavator and part of the ramp with it, burying the worker underneath. “We found the two victims within the first 10 to 15 minutes, who are unfortunately dead,” Moser said. The younger fatal victim is probably the junior boss of the client company from Carinthia.
Garden shed has been demolished
By the way, the corpses are still under all the stones, it would be too dangerous for the helpers to remove them – it could take a few days. However, the residents of the directly affected houses were unlucky. The rocky outcrops – the size of single-family homes – thundered close by. A garden shed was knocked over, a garage was destroyed. Ten residents were evacuated from their homes unharmed.
“Of course we will help”
A family found shelter at the Christkindlwirt: “My wife heard the loud bang. Those affected called us, of course we help,” says boss Georg Baumgartner. Annemarie Wieser was touched: “I couldn’t leave the kitchen anymore. All the dirt is in the house, the window is broken.” The police imposed an official space ban.
Interview: Mayor Markus Vogl spoke to the “Krone” on site.
„Crown”:Why was dredging necessary in this area at all?
Marcus Bird: It has been determined that there is a large block in the conglomerate wall with cracks. The geologists said at the time that there was danger here. That’s why we blocked the area for two years. Entering the outbuildings was prohibited and stopping and street parking was prohibited. Now we have started a renovation project. The aim was to remove as much material as possible from the top and then controlled to remove the rest from the bottom.
What went so catastrophically wrong?
It is still inexplicable to everyone what exactly happened here. The terrible accident happened while removing the big block, which we knew was the trickiest part. The stone has broken out of the wall to an extent one apparently could not have imagined.
The boulders thundered on a settlement. How are the residents?
About ten people were evacuated. Now we have to see when they can go back. A main building and an outbuilding sustained damage.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
