Latest news with #mudslide
National Post
29-05-2025
- Climate
- National Post
Swiss alpine village mostly destroyed in partial glacier collapse
A huge mass of rock and ice from a glacier thundered down a Swiss mountainside on Wednesday, sending plumes of dust skyward and coating with mud nearly all of an Alpine village that authorities had evacuated earlier this month as a precaution. Article content Article content Video on social media and Swiss TV showed the mudslide near Blatten, in the southern Lötschental valley, with homes and buildings partially submerged under a mass of brownish sludge. Regional police said a 64-year-old man was reported missing, and search and rescue operations involving a drone with a thermal camera were underway. Article content BREAKING: Massive Glacier Collapse in Blatten, Valais (Switzerland) – May 28, 2025 Over 3.5 million m³ of ice, rock, and snow collapsed from the Birch Glacier, putting 9 million tons of pressure on the glacier. The entire village of Blatten (approx. 300 people) was evacuated in… — Weather Monitor (@WeatherMonitors) May 28, 2025 Article content Article content 'What I can tell you at the moment is that about 90 per cent of the village is covered or destroyed, so it's a major catastrophe that has happened here in Blatten,' Stephane Ganzer, the head of security in the southern Valais region, told local TV channel Canal9. Article content The regional government said in a statement that a large chunk of the Birch Glacier above the village had broken off, causing the landslide which also buried the nearby Lonza River bed, raising the possibility of dammed water flows. Article content Aerial footage of Blatten in Switzerland after glacier collapse. — Disasters Daily (@DisastersAndI) May 29, 2025
Washington Post
28-05-2025
- Climate
- Washington Post
Alpine village is largely destroyed after Swiss glacier collapse causes 'major catastrophe'
GENEVA — A huge mass of rock and ice from a glacier thundered down a Swiss mountainside on Wednesday, sending plumes of dust skyward and coating with mud nearly all of an Alpine village that authorities had evacuated earlier this month as a precaution. Video on social media and Swiss TV showed the mudslide near Blatten, in the southern Lötschental valley, with homes and buildings partially submerged under a mass of brownish sludge. Regional police said a 64-year-old man was reported missing, and search and rescue operations involving a drone with thermal camera were under way.
BreakingNews.ie
28-05-2025
- Climate
- BreakingNews.ie
Swiss village destroyed by landslide in ‘major catastrophe'
A huge mass of rock and ice from a glacier has thundered down a mountainside in Switzerland, destroying nearly all of a village in the valley below. Video on social media and Swiss TV showed the mudslide near Blatten, in the southern Lotschental valley, with homes and buildings partially submerged under a mass of brown sludge. Advertisement 'What I can tell you at the moment is that about 90% of the village is covered or destroyed, so it's a major catastrophe that has happened here in Blatten,' Stephane Ganzer, the head of security in the southern Valais region, told local TV channel Canal9. Villagers were evacuated before the mudslide (Jean-Christophe Bott/Keystone via AP) The regional government said in a statement that a large chunk of the Birch Glacier located above the village had broken off, causing the landslide which as well as covering the village had also buried the nearby Lonza River bed, raising the possibility of dammed water flows. Mr Ganzer said it was not immediately clear whether anyone was injured, and that the army had been mobilised after earlier indications that the movement of the glacier was accelerating. 'There's a risk that the situation could get worse,' he told Canal9, alluding to the blocked river. Advertisement In recent days the authorities had ordered the evacuation of about 300 people, as well as all livestock from the village, amid fears that a 1.5 million cubic metre glacier above the village was at risk of collapse. Local authorities deployed across the area to assess the damage and whether there has been any casualties, Jonas Jeitziner, a spokesman for the Lotschental crisis centre, told The Associated Press by phone. In 2023, residents of the village of Brienz, in eastern Switzerland, were evacuated before a huge mass of rock slid down a mountainside, stopping just short of the settlement. Brienz was evacuated again last year because of the threat of a further rockslide.
BreakingNews.ie
28-05-2025
- Climate
- BreakingNews.ie
Mudslide hits Swiss Alpine village which was evacuated days earlier
A huge mass of rock and ice has caused damage near a village in the Swiss Alps that authorities evacuated earlier this month as a precaution. Video on social media showed the rumbling mudslide near Blatten, in the southern Lotschental valley. Images from the scene appeared to show several cabins partially submerged. Advertisement In recent days the authorities had ordered the evacuation of about 300 people, as well as all livestock from the village, amid fears that a 1.5 million cubic metre glacier above the village was at risk of collapse. Villagers were evacuated (Jean-Christophe Bott/Keystone via AP) Local authorities were deploying across the area to assess the damage and whether there has been any casualties, Jonas Jeitziner, a spokesman for the Lotschental crisis centre, said. In 2023, residents of the village of Brienz, in eastern Switzerland, were evacuated before a huge mass of rock slid down a mountainside, stopping just short of the settlement. Brienz was evacuated again last year because of the threat of a further rockslide.
The Independent
28-05-2025
- Climate
- The Independent
Rock slide hits Swiss Alpine village that authorities had ordered evacuated
A huge mass of rock and ice in the Swiss Alps sent plumes of dust skyward on Wednesday near a village that authorities had evacuated earlier this month as a precaution. Video on social media showed the rumbling mudslide near Blatten, in the southern Lötschental valley. Images from the scene appeared to show several cabins partially submerged. In recent days the authorities had ordered the evacuation of about 300 people, as well as all livestock from the village, amid fears that a 1.5 million cubic meter (52 million cubic feet) glacier above the village was at risk of collapse. Local authorities were deploying by helicopter and across the area to assess the damage and whether there has been any casualties, Jonas Jeitziner, a spokesman for the Lötschental crisis center, told The Associated Press by phone. In 2023, residents of the village of Brienz, in eastern Switzerland, were evacuated before a huge mass of rock slid down a mountainside, stopping just short of the settlement. Brienz was evacuated again last year because of the threat of a further rockslide.
