Swiss politicians express dismay at storm damage

Swiss President Viola Amherd inspects the storm damage. Keystone / Jean-Christophe Bott

 
 
Swiss politicians and public figures have expressed their solidarity for victims of storms and flooding that have once again caused major damage in Switzerland.

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Floods, buried villages and at least four fatalities: the devastating storms in cantons Ticino and Valais are causing dismay. This is also evident in Federal President Viola Amherd’s visit to her home canton.

“There are pictures. But seeing it up close is enormously impressive. It’s hard for the population,” said Amherd in Chippis near Sierre. “I experienced this as early as 1993 in Brig as a municipal councillor. Back then, people saw that solidarity is very important.”

Amherd also thought of the industrial plants, some of which had to cease production after the storms over the weekend: “We have to intervene quickly so that work can resume. It is unbelievable what nature has done,” she stressed.

Footballers’ message

The head of the Department of Defense, Civil Protection and Sport said that the army is mobilising troops to help the canton. Such events “follow one another ever more quickly, and we must pay attention to prevention,” she said.

The Swiss national football team was also affected in Stuttgart. Despite intensive preparations for the European Championship match against England, the national team stars expressed their solidarity with the population. “We also see what is happening at home: storms, fatalities and major damage,” says goalkeeper Yann Sommer in a video on X.

Valais midfielder Vincent Sierro continues: “It fills us with sadness. On behalf of the national team, we express our condolences.” And Italian legionnaire Remo Freuler concludes: “We are with you.”

Gabriele Dazio, the mayor of Lavizzara, was visibly moved. “I never thought that my eyes would see such devastation,” said Dazio with a shaky voice at a media conference in Locarno on Saturday.

Unimaginable damage

“There is a gym that has simply disappeared, holiday homes that no longer exist, friends who have been torn from the community. You can’t imagine this situation unless you have experienced it yourself,”

Dazio does not know how the affected villages can be given a future. The village of Peccia, which is home to a well-known sculpture school, is in a disastrous state.

The repetition of catastrophic events “affects us deeply,” said Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis at the media conference in Locarno on Saturday. “What happened?” asked the visibly moved Federal Councilor. “Will it continue like this this summer?” This repetition of storms shows how vulnerable we are.

Cassis had already travelled to Mesolcina last weekend after the storms. At that time, the Italian-speaking region of Graubünden was hit by severe storms.

It is not easy to appear at a media conference on two consecutive Sundays because of a tragedy caused by nature, said Cassis. Families have experienced terrible things, some have suffered deaths.

The Foreign Minister expressed the Federal Council’s support for the affected population and the authorities.

Translated from German by DeepL/mga

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