It has been ten years since a huge debris flow rolled through St. Lorenzen near Trieben. How is it there today? A local inspection of the “Krone”.
It had been pouring for days. The fact that Karl Fischbacher and his girlfriend Erika Zsarnai decided on the night of July 21, 2012 to sleep on the first floor instead of the ground floor as usual, probably prevented it from getting worse. The mudslide pushed tons of mud and debris into the house and even plunged a tree into the bedroom!
“We were just completely stunned.” The house alone, which they had bought and repaired a year earlier, had already caused EUR 90,000 in damage; enormous costs that were far from being compensated.
Destructive power surprised everyone
Today, on a sunny summer day, it looks friendly, neat and tidy. The twins, who were born a year later, happily frolic with friends. And the Bacherl, which flows just a few meters away, now does so peacefully, fenced and protected. No one thought then that it could develop such a destructive power.
70 buildings damaged
St. Lorenzen was awakened at 5 a.m. on July 21 by an “assassination attempt”. After heavy rainfall, a gigantic blockade had built up at the Lorenzerbach and then released. Meters high, the destructive debris flow rolled through the idyllic spot, sweeping everything away, burying many, damaged 70 objects.
Just escaped the great catastrophe
“Even though we were at the stream at 3 am,” Rene Waldsam recalls of the volunteer fire brigade. “Debris, branches and earth were shoveled away with excavators until they were completely exhausted.” If they had stayed two hours longer, “it wouldn’t be conceivable. We were 21 people and had little chance of saving ourselves.”
“Everyone Helped Everyone”
There were also dozens of storm operations before that. The operational balance after the drama: the helpers made 5000 hours. And the whole city joined in: “That really brought us together,” one resident recalls. “Everyone helped everyone, ran with the wheel arches, shoveled, cleaned.”
Bizarre Scenes: “A farmer couldn’t reach his house. So he let his tractor pull into the lowest gear to clear the road, then jumped up.” The band continues to this day.
Ten years later, do you still look anxiously at the sky when a thunderstorm is approaching? Yes, say some, “you can’t get that out anymore”. No, the others, “you can’t always be afraid”.
“Euro 15 million has been invested in protection, with mudslides and catchment basins,” said the mayor of Trieben, Helmut Schöttl. “But you can’t erase the memory. The wounds have healed, the scars remain.”
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
