Drainage tunnel slows debris flow in landslide-hit village

The flow velocity of debris above the evacuated mountain village of Brienz in canton Graubünden is the lowest in 15 years, according to the authorities. The velocities measured on the Rutschung Dorf have continued to decrease since mid-December, the municipality of Albula wrote in its information bulletin on Friday. The rate is currently between 10cm and 25cm per year. The fact that it was possible to drill into a water reservoir in the rock mass from below has contributed to this positive development. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox Initially, up to 1,500 litres of water per minute flowed into the drainage tunnel. The current rate is around 800 litres per minute. According to the information, the landslide speeds on the mountain also decreased slightly. How things will continue for the population of Brienz in the longer term is currently unclear. The conditions on the mountain are to be reassessed by the end of January. Adapted from German by DeepL/ac ...