The recovery work following the mudslides and flash floods in the Arlberg area is likely to keep emergency services and road authorities busy for days and weeks. In the worst-hit St. Anton, dredging and pumping will continue on Monday – a “temporary solution” has now been set up on the closed Arlberg Pass. The road will be opened overnight, but not for trucks.
As of Monday afternoon, the Arlberg federal road or pass road (B197) was still closed. On the Vorarlberg side, a temporary structure has now been built in the faded area, according to Vorarlberg’s state security councillor Christian Gantner (ÖVP).
Subsequently, during a meeting with the business operations in the afternoon, a decision was made on whether or not to open the road connection, which is currently important due to the closure of the Arlberg Tunnel (renovation).
Road partially torn away
A mudflow that came from St. Christoph am Arlberg (Tyrol) on the Vorarlberg side had moved the entire road on the Arlbergstrasse on Friday evening. The road was badly washed away and a section of the carriageway towards Tyrol was torn away over a length of about 60 metres.
Cleanup and repair work began immediately and a temporary structure was built and paved over the weekend, Gantner told the APA.
Waiting for green light from Tyrol
According to the Council of State, this means that traffic, including heavy traffic, can pass on one lane again and probably with traffic light control. However, approval had to wait for the consultation in Tyrol.
After a meeting at the Landeck district headquarters, the operational leadership met at 1:00 p.m., where it was decided how to proceed.
General traffic is allowed to drive at night, trucks are not yet allowed to drive
At around 3:15 p.m., a decision was made. “With a joint effort, we have succeeded in improving the B197 Arlbergstrasse to such an extent that the operational management on site can reopen the pass road to traffic, at least at night. The road will remain closed during the day until further notice,” the state of Tyrol said in a press release. In concrete terms, this means: “The Arlbergstrasse is only open to general traffic between 8 p.m. and 7 a.m. The road will be closed to all traffic from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. The restrictions for heavy traffic due to the closure of the Arlberg Tunnel will also remain in force during the night-time opening.”
This arrangement will initially apply until the end of the week. The situation will be reassessed on Friday.
The clean-up work is continuing at full speed
In St. Anton on the Tyrolean side, the worst affected area, clean-up work continues at full speed on Monday.
“We have been working all night again,” says Peter Mall of the crisis team. 250 emergency services are on site to clear sediment basins and repair houses.
However, the work “will not be finished on Friday, these are major projects,” he noted. Unnecessary travel in the region should be avoided as much as possible, he urged.
There is no fear of new landslides, Mall said. It rained only lightly during the night, but no precipitation fell on Monday morning. Now that the weather is improving, the forecast is also good.
Source: Krone
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