For several days, the rain has poured down, and the extreme weather Hans has ravaged large parts of southern Norway. The enormous amounts of rainfall have led to floods, inundations and evacuations in several places.
Thomas Bølum Kjørstad experienced this when he was driving from the cabin down to the shop on Tjønnbakken above Mysusæter in Sel municipality on Wednesday evening.
Braskereidfoss power plant in Våler municipality is flooded. According to NRK, it is being considered to blow up the dam to relieve the enormous pressure as a result of the extreme weather “Hans”. Video: Morten Risberg. view more
– It started to get quite dry and nice up here yesterday, so I was going to drive down to go to the shop. It was nice and dry all the way down to Rusten, Kjørstad tells Dagbladet.
Came to an abrupt stop
He explains that the road between Rusten and Otta is narrow and full of sharp bends, and that several of the bends have been damaged in previous landslides. Despite this, he thought it was still safe to drive on.
RONDANE: Earlier this summer, Thomas Bølum Kjørstad was on a walk in the area with a view of the Rondane mountains. view more
– Just before the second turn from Otta, quite far down, there was an abrupt stop. The forest came down furiously, and the trees snapped like matches, he says.
There have been several landslides in Hol municipality. This is reported by the fire service. County road 50 was closed, among other things. Video: Arild Tvedt. Reporter: Marte Nyløkken Helseth / Dagbladet. view more
A large landslide had crossed the road, and Kjørstad says that he stopped because he perceived the situation as dangerous. Coincidentally, the responsible contractor who had been sent out to inspect the landslide was in the car directly behind him.
– He was going down for the day, but was locked in with me, and called for an excavator.
Live in uncertainty: – Terrified
Go back
Kjørstad decided to turn around, as he suspected that the clean-up work was going to take time. Back in the cabin, Kjørstad accessed the municipality’s website and found that the slide had continued down the road towards the settlement in Otta.
On Wednesday evening, the mayor of Sel municipality, Eldri Siem, stated that the police were in the process of evacuating 65 households.
– I don’t know the extent, but there is a danger that the slide could slide out, and that is what causes people to evacuate, Siem told Dagbladet.
Cancels performances
Alone in the cabin
Kjørstad says that he is alone in the cabin, as the rest of the family is in Trondheim, but that he is doing well.
– You’re not about to run out of food or something like that?
– It’s going well for me, and I have everything I need. It’s actually very nice and quiet up here now.
He says that he keeps up to date through a local Facebook group, where people help each other and share information. Kjørstad, on the other hand, does not expect to be able to return home any time soon.
– On the Norwegian Public Roads Administration’s website it was stated that the road will be closed until Saturday. So I sit and wait.
– So you have to stay until Saturday?
– In any case, and it is possible that it will happen over the weekend as well.
2023-08-10 12:36:42
#forest #furiously
