Flooding in Switzerland after heavy rainfall

GENEVA

Flooding occurred in the Swiss canton of Valais on Friday due to persistent rainfall, melting snow and waterlogged ground, local authorities reported on Friday.

In the popular tourist resort of Zermatt, next to the world-famous Matterhorn mountain, the Matttervispa river partially burst its banks. The mountain village has been cut off from the outside world since midday on Friday, as the Matterhorn-Gotthard Railway announced on X on Friday.

In the canton of Valais, the river Rhone and its tributaries are threatening to burst their banks due to flooding, authorities have warned. The discharge of the Rhone has been at a high level since the morning.

According to the authorities, the Rhone is likely to rise even further. The authorities expect the river to reach its highest level by late evening.

The authorities are warning that flooding and landslides may also occur in the tributaries.

In view of the situation, the canton of Valais has decided to raise the warning level for the entire canton for the Rhone and tributaries from a warning level to an alert level.

"This means in particular that the monitoring system must be strengthened and that active preparations must be made to take measures," the canton's authorities said in a statement.

In the municipality of Chippis in the canton of Valais, around 30 people were evacuated on Friday, according to the daily Nouvelliste.

"It's a precautionary measure," the commune president told the newspaper. According to the mayor, the evacuees will spend the night in the commune's gymnasium.

Meanwhile, the Swiss federal authorities raised the danger level for parts of the canton of Valais to the second-highest level 4 on Friday afternoon.

The canton of Valais recommends against approaching watercourses, parking on bridges, restricting freedom of movement and refraining from filming or photographing the storm events.