The meteorologists have sent out an orange flood warning for Innlandet and Viken. The water flow is increasing in several places, and in the Drammenselva, for example, the level may be orange during Sunday.
The water is also rising in Hallingdal, where several municipalities have already set up emergency staff.
It was on advice from a geologist that Ål municipality set up a crisis team on Sunday morning, the mayor of Ål municipality, Solveig Vestenfor (Ap), tells Dagbladet.
Just before 1 p.m., between 60 and 100 people were asked to evacuate to the hotel in Sundre, writes Hallingdølen.
– It is a forced evacuation, says the mayor to the newspaper.
The mayor cannot rule out that it may be necessary to evacuate more houses in other areas.
– Discussions are taking place about other areas. Those who live in areas where it may be appropriate to evacuate will be contacted directly, says Vestenfor to Dagbladet.
Grim message: No break
Nesbyen municipality is also setting up crisis staff, mayor Tore Haraldset told Dagbladet.
– We are setting up a crisis team now at 11.30. We have been notified that this could happen, so we were well prepared, he says.
Among other things, the municipality is considering evacuating people to the sports hall, as was done during the extreme weather “Hans”. This will be assessed throughout the day.
HIGH WATER DELIVERY: The river runs high under Hajembrua in Nesbyen on Sunday afternoon. Photo: Magnus Lindahl / Hallingdølen Show more
– Already quite serious
The flood comes just weeks after “Hans” hit the area hard.
– I realized that there was going to be a lot of rainfall, but that it would turn out that we would have to set up emergency staff again, it was a big surprise. I didn’t expect it to take off like this again, says Haraldset.
– We have some experience now, and it will probably not be as violent as during “Hans”, but it is already quite serious.
The water in, among other things, the river Rukkedøla has risen sharply following the rainfall that has hit the area, and the flood peak is not expected to be reached until Sunday evening, says the mayor.
– The Hallingmarken is already under water, and the water goes far inland. The water is soon at the level of national highway 7. There it is starting to become very chaotic with long queues due to the light regulation.
Heavy rainfall in Oslo leads to road closures overnight into Sunday. Photo: Stian Lysberg Solum / NTB Show more
Hundreds are being isolated
The municipality will also close the bridge over the river, which leads to Sjong, due to the water level in the river. There has also been a minor landslide along the road in the area.
– So those who live in that area are about to be locked up, says Haraldset, who himself lives there, and probably won’t get home from the municipal hall on Sunday.
In total, we are talking about a few hundred people, who are now being isolated.
QUEUES: Rainfall in combination with roadworks creates queues on national highway 7 near Nesbyen. Photo: National Road Administration traffic camera Show more
The municipality encourages the cabin people to drive around Numedal, as the situation in Rukkedøla is uncertain, and also stops cyclists on their way down the mountain sides towards the centre, says Haraldset.
HIT AGAIN: Ål and the surrounding areas felt the forces of nature during the extreme weather Hans. Then, among other things, roads and streams were destroyed. On Sunday, three households were evacuated due to the risk of landslides. Photo: Terje Pedersen / NTB Photo: Terje Pedersen / NTB Show more
Monitors the mobile network
During the extreme weather “Hans” earlier in August, the mobile network disappeared in Ål municipality.
– We are in contact with the State Administrator and Telenor, who have people out to prevent and keep the network up, says Mayor Solveig Vestenfor.
As of now, the municipality has no indications that the mobile network is in immediate danger of going down.
– We have not received any signals about it, but we are on the lookout, says the mayor.
Should the mobile network go down, the municipality asks the residents of Ål to inform themselves via Radio Hallingdal on the FM network.
– Not finished with “Hans”
The reason why the water level is now so high in Ål municipality is because the ground is saturated and that the water level in the waterways was already high, says mayor Vestenfor.
– It is clear that this is not what we want. It feels as if we are not finished with “Hans”. I have to admit that I’m not exactly excited about rain at the moment, but we’ll just have to roll up our sleeves, breathe with our guts and deal with this. We do everything we can to ensure the safety of all people and animals.
The municipality and others now have a number of people out in the field and continuously study the amounts of water in various places.
– It is like this now that we are just waiting for the next phone call, the next status, and new messages that need to be investigated, says the mayor.
2023-08-27 11:03:45
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