Landslide cuts off valley from outside world – tourists flown out by helicopter

After a storm, tourists are stranded in the Swiss Saas Valley. A helicopter flight is the only way out – but it's expensive.

Sion – Switzerland, and in particular the canton of Valais, has been hit by severe weather again. The region had to contend with severe storms at the end of June and the beginning of July, with floods and mudslides breaking out and causing considerable damage to buildings, roads, infrastructure and agricultural land. On September 5, the mountain region, which is popular with tourists, was hit again by a storm that triggered a landslide and isolated the Saas Valley. Brienz was also cut off from the outside world in mid-August.

Storm in Valais leads to landslide: Valley cut off from outside world

The recent storms in the canton of Valais are causing significant traffic disruptions. Images from the Saas Valley show a destroyed road and bridge, cutting off the valley from road traffic. Although the impact of the recent storm was less severe in terms of damage to buildings and no buildings were destroyed, some tourists are stranded in the region as a major access road has been blocked. According to the spokesperson for the regional crisis team, around 2,200 tourists are stranded there.

In order to offer the tourists an opportunity to leave the country, the authorities proposed an unusual solution: they could be flown out by helicopter, the newspaper reports View. Most of those stranded are Swiss and not all of them are in a hurry to leave the area, said Bumann. There are enough accommodations.

Helicopter as an exit option: Valley in Switzerland isolated

For those in a hurry, however, leaving the country was quite expensive. A helicopter flight, which takes just a few minutes from Saas-Fee to Stalden, cost 140 francs, or about 150 euros. The regional command staff in Saas announced that the airlift was deployed on Friday afternoon (September 6). The flights took place between 4 and 7 p.m. By Friday at 3 p.m., 300 people had already registered. Five people can fly per helicopter. Media spokesman Bruno Kalbermatten confirmed the death Valais MessengerThe residents of the Bavona Valley, in the upper Maggia Valley, were also evacuated by helicopter in July.

However, it might be worth having a little patience and waiting. Currently, the affected road is not expected to be passable again until Sunday (8 September) at the earliest, reports the dpa. An observation flight revealed that large boulders above the road still need to be blasted. Some of these boulders have a volume of 100 cubic meters. (jh/dpa)