The situation in Berchtesgadener Land is coming to a head as a result of heavy rainfall. The district declared a disaster at 10:22 p.m. due to the severe weather. As the water management office told the BR, a new historic high was reached on the Berchtesgadener Ache. The level has risen to more than 3.50 meters within a very short time – so far the highest level from 2012 was 3.12 meters.
Walter Raith, the head of the Traunstein Water Management Office, speaks of a historic record. Depending on how the rains developed over the next few hours, the situation could worsen. According to current information, there are already the first mudslides and landslides.
Residents should no longer enter basements and avoid banks
A spokesman for the Integrated Control Center Traunstein spoke of a “dramatic situation”. The places Berchtesgaden and Bischofswiesen are particularly affected. There the water shoots out of the mountains. Individual houses have already been cleared due to slipping slopes. The district is coordinating the operation with immediate effect. The people in the places were called to no longer enter their cellars. In the municipality of Berchtesgaden, the Ache threatens to overflow its banks. There you should avoid the bank area, it said on the part of the district office.
Roads closed, fire brigade in constant use
The heavy rains had already caused several small mountain streams in the communities around Bischofswiesen in the Berchtesgadener Land to overflow. As Kreisbrandrat Josef Kaltner announced on BR request, the entire valley basin along the B20 between Hallthurm and Berchtesgaden is affected. Roads had to be closed, the fire brigades recorded 100 missions in just a few hours.
In some cases, people had to be brought to safety. The approach from the north is not possible (via Bayerisch Gmain and Hallthurm) because in the north of Bischofswiesen the B20 has been closed due to flooding.
BR weather expert: Over 100 liters of rain per square meter possible
BR weather expert Michael Sachweh had already warned in the afternoon that the Berchtesgadener Land in particular could be affected by heavy rainfall. Rain amounts of over 100 liters per square meter are possible there. Precise predictions are difficult to make because of the traffic jam. Very humid air flows to the Alps and accumulates there. This could be associated with large amounts of rain.
The levels are also rising in the Traunstein district
The heavy rain is also causing problems for the Traunstein district. The Schwarzlofer mountain stream has overflowed its banks in the tourist community of Reit im Winkl. The federal highway 305 had to be closed in the local area due to flooding. Here, too, the emergency services try to protect buildings with sandbags. The river levels of the Tiroler Ache and Traun continue to rise.
According to information from the Traunstein Water Management Office, both bodies of water could even reach reporting level 3 tomorrow. Provided that it rains continuously through the night. The neighboring Austrian state of Salzburg also reports flooding after hours of rain.
Full cellar in the Cham district
In the district of Cham, too, the heavy rain caused the streets to be flooded, the manhole covers removed and the cellars full. As the police announced on BR request, the Bayplatz and the railway underpass in Furth im Wald were particularly affected, where the fire brigade had to pump out the water. There was no major damage, however, “got off lightly,” according to a police officer. According to the police, the situation there calmed down around 8 p.m.