Landslide threat: authorities order evacuation of Swiss mountain village

On Monday, authorities in Valais announced the complete evacuation of the village of 300 people, with the exception of two areas, citing landslide dangers. Keystone-SDA

The situation in Blatten in the Lötschental Valley, canton Valais, is becoming increasingly critical. Following a debris flow high above the mountain village in the Kleines Nesthorn and Birchgletscher region, the authorities have ordered the complete evacuation of its 300 residents due to "imminent" dangers.

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The mountain above Blatten is moving and a major rockfall is “imminent”, which in a worst-case scenario could hit the village, warn Swiss experts.

Residents of Blatten had to leave the village by 11:30am.

“The situation is very acute,” Matthias Ebener, head of information for the command staff, told Swiss public radio, SRF. “It’s clear to everyone that the rockslide is imminent.” The evacuation has now been completed.

According to Ebener, geologists reassessed the situation on Monday morning. “They concluded that the descending material likely requires more space than initially thought,” he said.

Experts expect the rock to slide in the next few hours, or at the latest by Tuesday morning. And around two million cubic metres of water could come down.

“In the worst-case scenario, it could be five million cubic metres,” explained Alban Brigger of the Natural Hazards Department of canton Valais.

He expects the rock to hit the glacier and both to slide down together.

‘Vacate your homes immediately’

According to a statement from the municipality, residents were not required to gather at the gymnasium until 10am, where an information session took place.

“Vacate your homes immediately, pack the essentials,” said a message on the municipal mobile phone app. The road toward Fafleralp is closed.

The evacuees then gathered shortly before noon in the neighboring municipality of Wiler, further down the Lötschental, said SRF Valais correspondent Ruth Seeholzer, who is also on site: “The mood there is depressed.”

In Wiler, all residents were required to report. Accommodation is being sought for them. Some residents are staying with relatives and friends. The municipalities in the valley are also looking for accommodation for those affected.

Residents in the neighbouring Weissenried and Eisten areas are not affected, reported Alertswiss, the federal government’s warning app. They are located on the opposite mountainside. Due to the off-season, hardly any holidaymakers are affected.

‘Imminent’ landslide

Cantonal geologists have installed a camera and a GPS device to monitor the mountain. They detected a displacement of over 2.90 metres, which is now even greater, said Brigger: “We can see that a landslide is indeed imminent.”

A few days ago, rocks on the Kleiner Nesthorn (3,342 m) – a promontory of the Bietschhorn peak (3,934 m) – crashed onto the Birch Glacier, above Blatten, triggering a debris flow. This finally stopped about 500 metres above the Lonza River on the southern edge of Blatten. The debris flow had the volume of a small avalanche. Now, even larger masses of rock threaten to break off.

The Birch Glacier has been under surveillance since the 1990s. The local authority believes that snow melting at altitudes above 2,500 metres could be the cause of the current dangerous situation.

Translated from German by DeepL/sb

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