Cash crunch halts clearing Swiss village of Second World War munitions

A catastrophic explosion occurred on the night of December 19-20, 1947 at a Swiss Army ammunition depot above Mitholz. Keystone / Peter Schneider

The resettlement of villagers living near a former weapons stockpile has been interrupted due to lack of funds to purchase their homes. 

The decision to clear the former weapons stockpile in Mitholz village in central Switzerland was made in 2020, after experts found that the 3,500 tonnes of ammunition and explosives stored in the underground site posed a bigger danger than previously assumed. Around 50 people living close to the area will have to leave their homes by 2025 and have to be compensated.

+ Mitholz: Life in the shadow of an Alpine ticking time bomb

While the government approved CHF2.59 billion ($2.74 billion) for the purpose, the defence ministry says the tranche of CHF50 million for the current year has been blocked. According to Swiss public broadcaster, SRFExternal link, this is because the security policy commission of the House of Representatives needs more time to decide on the CHF2.59 billion budget. 

The underground ammo storage depot in Mitholz, which was built during the Second World War, was the site of an explosion in 1947 which killed nine people.