The area destroyed by two landslides at the end of August in Schwanden will never be habitable again.
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The houses in the threatened area that were spared by the landslides will be demolished. The authorities justified the decision on the basis of a new hazard map.
A further landslide in this “red” zone could have fatal consequences, Hansruedi Forrer, the mayor of the municipality of South Glarus, told the media in Schwanden on Friday. As a result, the local authority has been forced to order the demolition of the remaining buildings in the zone, which will also be off-limits in future.
Talks with the owners of the buildings concerned will be held over the next two weeks. Final evacuation orders will be sent to them at the end of January. Any appeals will have to be addressed to the Glarus government.
At the end of August, six houses were buried or destroyed, but no one was injured. Around a hundred people were evacuated. A further 60,000 cubic metres of rubble could still descend down the valley.
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