URFAHR ENVIRONMENT. On Thursday evening too, severe storms hit Upper Austria and especially the Urfahr-Umgebung district. A severe hailstorm caused severe damage to residential buildings, agricultural properties, schools and church towers.
The hailstorm began at 5.30 p.m. in Linz, before it raged across the communities of Walding, Gramastetten, Eidenberg, Kirchschlag, Hellmonsödt, Haibach and Reichenau and finally moved on to the Freistadt district.
Long list of damage
Above all, the heavy hail caused significant damage in the affected communities: In Walding, all cars from second dealerships were damaged, as were numerous residential buildings. In Gramastetten, around 115 objects, not including agricultural objects, were affected. Since the roof of the school was completely destroyed, the children have no school today, Friday (June 25th). The kindergarten is not affected.
More than 29 objects were damaged in Eidenberg, and many houses here had to be temporarily secured with tarpaulins by the emergency services. In Kirchschlag near Linz there are 35 missions to report, in Hellmonsödt the fire brigades have been alerted to 77 missions. Many objects in the center of the village were damaged, especially the school, the church and the kindergarten. The municipality of Reichenau also reports numerous damage: here, almost every house and especially the town center was affected. “The hailstones were up to 10 centimeters in size,” reports Roland Lichtenauer from the Reichenau Fire Department.
Second storm around 10 p.m.
But that shouldn’t be enough on this day. Around 10 p.m. there was a second storm that passed north of the district and caused flooding and fallen trees in the communities of Vorderweissenbach, Bad Leonfelden, Schenkenfelden and Reichenthal.
Almost 500 firefighters in action
A total of 300 operations were recorded by the fire brigade, during which 37 fire brigades from the district were alerted and around 500 firefighters were on duty from 5.30 p.m. to midnight. A “Technical Operations Management” (TEL UU) was set up in the fire station in Zwettl an der Rodl to ensure an orderly operational sequence.
The main tasks for the emergency services were to remove storm damage and flooding, but above all to cover the heavy hail damage with partially 10 centimeter projectiles that destroyed the roofs with tarpaulins and to temporarily secure them. According to the fire brigade, many missions will not have to be processed until Friday, although it is assumed that further missions will be added in daylight. On the night of the storm, the staff of the “technical operations management” also activated so-called F KAT trains with several fire departments together with the state warning center. She will categorically work through missions all day on Friday.
Governor thanks the emergency services
Thanks to the emergency services came from Governor Thomas Stelzer on June 25th: “Respect and thanks to the fire brigades who have been in action for days and nights. Last night alone, 1,600 comrades from more than 100 fire brigades in Upper Austria were on duty.
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