Jan Thunig estimates that the water was over a meter high. In a very short time, the ice cream workshop’s production facility on Weilheimer Strasse in Starnberg was full on Monday. Luckily, the fire department came quickly and pumped out the water. But the consequences of Monday’s violent storm, which started around 4:30 p.m., are so severe that owner Thunig fears he will have to buy all his machines new. “There is a risk of significant damage,” he says, “in the worst case scenario, even a total loss.” According to Thunig, this could mean costs of up to 100,000 euros – which he may have to pay himself. Whether the insurance will pay remains to be seen.
He is not alone with this problem: cellars everywhere in Starnberg were full on Monday, and underground car parks were also affected. At times there was chaos on the streets of the district town because underpasses were flooded and storm drains were blocked. The S-Bahn briefly stopped operating between Starnberg and Tutzing, leaving passengers at a loss. Motorists were stuck in flooded underpasses on the B2 and at the North train station. A police patrol car even had to be pulled out of the floods.
The helpers went on more than 200 missions, most of them in Starnberg. “It happened in quick succession,” reported Michael Reiter, operations manager for the Starnberg fire department. In addition, due to the traffic jams, his emergency services were only able to fight their way to the equipment shed, which was also flooded with water. The Technical Relief Agency (THW) supported the fire departments and, among other things, installed 30 sandbags on a company building on Moosstrasse. A total of more than 200 firefighters from the greater Starnberg area and BRK employees were on duty; There were no injuries.
The storm did not result in any significant major operations for the police. However, the officials were busy making it clear to drivers that there was no way through Starnberg because both underpasses were full. They had to endure some wild insults. After the closures were lifted, they collected around ten license plates that had been torn off the vehicles while driving through the flooded underpasses.
The final stop was at See train station
For commuters from Munich, See station was the last stop from around 6:30 p.m. because there was a suspicion of track erosion on the route between Starnberg and Tutzing. Regional traffic was also affected by the closure. A railway spokesman said a replacement service with large taxis was available for passengers from around 7 p.m. After checking, the closure was lifted shortly after 8 p.m. In fact, slope water had made its way under the railway embankment at the level of Oskar-von-Miller-Straße, eroded a smaller hill and then poured into a house below.
District Administrator Stefan Frey (CSU) thanked the rescue workers on social media for their efforts. “Starnberg got it pretty bad,” he wrote. “Huge commitment from our fire departments, BRK and THW”. At around 9 p.m. in the district office, the district fire inspection took over the coordination of the operations of the neighboring fire departments. By midnight alone, more than 100 operations were registered in the operations center. “I was constantly informed about the current situation,” says Frey.
In addition to countless private houses in which the cellars were full, the Fünfseen and Franziskus schools, the St. Nikolaus Catholic kindergarten, the music school and the town hall were also affected. In addition, some streets, which are not in the best condition anyway, suffered massively from the floods, reported Starnberg’s mayor Patrick Janik. For example, the crumbling road surface at the forest playground was partially completely cleared away. “The failures of the past are taking revenge,” says Janik.
Andreas Hollwich, boss of the Tutzingen company “Die Bautrockner”, has been on the phone since Monday evening. His 18 employees are working all over the city to clear water from basements and basements. “All hell is breaking loose here,” says one employee. Hollwich knows: In contrast to the neighboring communities, where it mostly rained or lightly hailed, “Starnberg was hit exceptionally.” However, there was only water damage; roofs were largely spared – unlike the 2023 hailstorm around Benediktbeuern. The damage known so far varies in severity. According to Hollwich, old buildings from the 1930s to 1950s are generally easier to dry out than newer buildings with insulation material that soaks up like a sponge with up to ten liters of water per square meter. Then the only solution is to drill holes to suck out the water and dry it for weeks. The costs are 30 to 40 euros per square meter.
Jan Thunig has already found a construction dryer. And the owner of the ice cream workshop also has good news: his shops in Starnberg and Munich will remain open, as will the stand at the French Week. One or two types of ice cream will probably run out shortly. Because Thunig will not be able to produce ice cream for at least the next two or three weeks. This results in a loss of income. The restaurateur states: “It’s a disaster.”