Swiss army builds emergency bridge to connect landslide-hit village

© Keystone / Gian Ehrenzeller

The army has built an emergency bridge in Schwanden in canton Glarus to allow clearance vehicles access to the area affected by a landslide. Around 60,000 cubic metres of material could still potentially slide down.

The bridge is 36 metres long and has a load-bearing capacity of 40 tonnes, said Sébastien Neuhaus, commander of the disaster relief battalion, on Thursday. Manufactured in England, the bridge was assembled by 15 soldiers. The abutments were built by private companies.

+Read more: Landslide in Swiss village destroys houses and barns

The bridge provides access to the residential and industrial area affected by the landslide, which was cut off from the rest of the world, even for heavy clearing vehicles, said Hanspeter Speich, chief of staff of the local authority. The priority is to monitor the area before starting to clear it.

Sorting and storage

“The materials must first be sorted before being removed. Interim storage sites will be set up before final storage,” explained Speich. The local authority is also responsible for planning the partial return of evacuees to non-risky areas.

At present, 90 people are still being evacuated, said Rudolf Forrer, President of the municipality of South Glarus, which includes Schwanden. Around thirty of them lived in the red zone, which is strictly off-limits.

Grave uncertainty

“The uncertainty is particularly difficult for those affected,” emphasised Forrer. Around 60,000 cubic metres of material could still potentially slide down onto the village. It is impossible to predict if and how another landslide might occur.

Two major landslides occurred after heavy rainfall at the end of August above Schwanden. Six houses were buried or destroyed. Nobody was injured, but around a hundred people had to be evacuated. The rain caused further landslides in September.

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