A small town in the Swiss canton of Graubünden is preparing for an evacuation.
The village is on a mountain slope - and threatens to slide down.
Brienz – The situation is tense in a mountain village in the Swiss mountains.
The municipality of Brienz/Brinzauls is located in the Albula Valley in the canton of Graubünden at an altitude of around 1,150 meters and is now preparing for an evacuation.
The danger has been known in Switzerland for years as the "Brienzer Slide", but the mountain route is slipping faster and faster.
"In the past 100 years, Brienz/Brinzauls has moved a few centimeters a year," reports the municipality of Albula/Alvra.
The so-called landslide is therefore one of the largest in Switzerland.
The rate of slope movement has been increasing for several years.
"Currently, the movement is around one meter per year." According to the canton of Graubünden, it was almost 135 centimeters last year.
Swiss mountainside threatens to slide: municipality prepares for evacuation
Now the municipality fears that from early summer part of the mountain that lies above the village could collapse due to the increasing speed.
The residents must therefore be prepared to evacuate the village by the end of 2023.
The residents would be informed about the plans and security measures shortly after Easter, it said in a statement.
The village claims to have almost 100 residents and up to 200 tourists during the holiday season.
The municipality of @AlbulaAlvra has intensified planning for an orderly #evacuation of the village of Brienz/Brinzauls.
High above the village, part of the #BrienzerRutsch has accelerated significantly.
#Info event with live stream on April 13th.
https://t.co/4OO2bujGxh pic.twitter.com/CDEvOCnavr
— Municipality of Albula/Alvra (@AlbulaAlvra) April 3, 2023
Due to the constant sliding of the village in Switzerland, cracks and minor damage had already occurred in buildings in recent years.
Attempts continue to avoid evacuation by digging a tunnel under the village to drain the area.
The project is promising, but is still in a test phase.
(nz)