After enduring one of the worst flood disasters in recent history, evacuees in Eastern Norway are finally starting to return home. nonetheless, the danger is not completely over, as some areas still pose risks for travel. Tyrifjorden, in particular, has seen rising water levels in recent days. Despite the progress, there are still many evacuees in Innlandet county and Ringerike municipality in Viken. Safety assessments are being conducted to ensure the safety of those returning home. Landslides and flooding remain concerns as the water flows towards Tyrifjorden. In Innlandet county, there are still between 70 and 170 people evacuated, while Ringerike municipality has seen a decrease from 522 evacuees to 157. Despite the removal of flood warnings in some areas, caution is still necessary. Road repairs and cleanup efforts are underway, but extensive work is expected due to the damage caused by the extreme weather. The total extent of the damage is yet to be determined, but preliminary estimates suggest it could be one of the most expensive natural disasters in Norway’s history.
The peak of the flood has now passed and several evacuees can finally return to their homes. But it is still dangerous to travel in some places.
Tyrifjorden has risen in recent days. This photo was taken on Tuesday.
You can follow the development of the water flow in Eastern Norway in real time at the bottom of the case.
Thursday is ten days ago extreme weather Hans hit Eastern Norway and triggered one of the worst flood disasters in recent times.
There are still many evacuees in Innlandet county and Ringerike municipality in Viken. On Wednesday, Ringerike municipality announced that some evacuees can start moving back to their homes.
During the day, the number of evacuees decreased from 522 to 388.
On Thursday, there are 157 evacuees in Ringerike, says communications manager Mats Øieren in Ringerike municipality.
– There are very extensive safety assessments that must be made in each individual case, and there are many areas that must be assessed, writes the municipality on its websites.
– When all the water will now follow the course of the river from Hønefoss and out into the Tyrifjorden, we must be aware of the risk of landslides and landslides, they add.
In Innlandet county, between 70 and 170 people are still evacuated on Thursday morning. That’s down from around 300 on Wednesday.
– The uncertainty is linked to a couple of housing estates which can be cleared within a short time, writes senior adviser at the State Administrator in the Interior, Monica Lunde in an SMS to Aftenposten.
Danger warning removed on the west side of the Drammensvassdraget
Extreme weather Hans hit Eastern Norway with full force on 7 August. In recent days, rain showers have caused the water to sink more slowly than it would otherwise. And right up until Wednesday, the water continued to rise in Tyrifjorden, where Vikersund has been particularly exposed.
– There is extensive flooding and flood damage in exposed places. The water level will remain at this high level for a few days before we see a decreasing water level, writes the warning service Varsom.no on its websites.
This is what it looked like at Fagernes in Nord-Aurdal on Friday last week. The municipality is among several where the flood warning has been removed.
On Wednesday, the flood warning has been removed for several areas. This applies to the municipalities on the west side of the Drammensvassdraget, from Øystre Slidre to Sigdal.
But there are still danger warnings in some places:
- Red flood warning for the areas around Randsfjorden and Tyrifjorden. It includes Hønefoss.
- Orange flood warning for lower parts of the Drammen river, as well as Mjøsa and Vorma.
- Yellow flood warning for Glomma south of Vormsund
- Yellow warning about the risk of landslides in parts of Innlandet and Viken county.
also read
Here, contaminated sewage is flushed directly into the drinking water source
Stepping up the road work
As the water level is falling, more and more roads are being opened. But large-scale work is now underway to repair the damage after Hans.
– The water is gone in most places. Going forward, there will be more and more road work to repair after the extreme weather.
The Norwegian Public Roads Administration has started clean-up and work on roads after Hans’ destruction. Here from highway 4 in Lygnabakkene on Hadeland on Monday.
This is what the Swedish Road Administration writes on its website. They state that they are now starting to get a better picture of the extent of the damage.
– In the future, there will necessarily be more and more road work, writes Veivesenet, which asks motorists to pay attention to those who are out working.
All the major roads between Oslo and Trondheim are now open. But heavy transport is encouraged to drive national highway 3 through Østerdalen.
The total extent of damage after the extreme weather and the flood is not known, but on Monday the Norwegian Nature Damage Pool estimated that insurance damage alone amounted to NOK 1.6 billion so far.
In addition, there is damage to cars, caravans, agricultural properties, roads, railways and other infrastructure.
State Highways Authority estimated Thursday that the damage to the national and European road network alone amounts to NOK 300–400 million. Innlandet county alone estimates damage to the county road network at up to one billion.
– I think we can state that this is one of the most expensive natural disasters to have hit Norway. If not the most expensive, said communications director Jan Erik Fåne at Finans Norge to NTB on 15 August.
Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre (Ap) visited Tangevik in Ål on Tuesday. Here, houses were razed to the ground as a result of the extreme weather Hans.
#danger #warnings #shrinking #red #level #parts #Drammensvassdraget