When Rain Leads to Catastrophe

In the town of Lavamünd  in lower Carinthia - where the Lavant flows into the Drau river - heavy rains lasting several days unleashed a catastrophic hundred-year flood that will live long in people's memories. With water levels reaching 6,85m (the average being 2m), the town center was a meter deep in water. The Drau river was carrying nearly nine times its usual volume, and the water flooded the banks in devastating fashion.

240 households were left without electricity, large-scale evacuations were carried out and over 50 people would be homeless for the longer term. With boats from the fire and rescue services, trapped residents were brought to safety in emergency shelters. The fire departments, together with many volunteers, worked day and night to erect barriers against the masses of water in order to control the damage. Vehicles, furniture and garbage swept through the area, flooding public facilities and private homes with muddy water.

Numerous residents of the three thousand strong community lost all their possessions within a few hours and stood aghast before the ruins their lives had been reduced to. The resulting damages are estimated to run into the millions.

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… the Big Clean-Up Began

After the all-clear was given concerning further downpours, the crisis slowly subsided. The water found an outlet and the extent of the destruction only then became clearly visible. Flooded basements and ground floors, demolished restaurants and stores and copious amounts of mud inflicted serious damage on masonry and public spaces. Retaining walls had to be erected, and flood debris was removed with private vehicles and boats. The residents who got away with no more than a scare, and those who could no longer return to their homes proceeded to assist the clean-up crews in order to clear the streets, thereby making room for further assistance. Tons of damaged goods and belongings had to be disposed of before the exhausting task of cleaning up could begin. People both young and old were involved in clearing up the damage. After barely two weeks of continuous work, the official clean-up work was concluded. For many, however, getting back to normal life was a much longer process. Returning to some dwellings was still out of the question due to the mud and water that had damaged electricity and made furniture unusable. Negotiations with insurance companies were taken up and the question of blame for lack of safety regulations was a major concern for those involved.