Landslide 20 evacuees in Schwanden GL are allowed to return home

The 20 people still evacuated after the landslides of August 2023 were allowed to return to their homes in Schwanden GL on Tuesday. The reason for this is the advanced construction of a protective dam.

The municipality of Glarus Süd announced in a press release that it is very pleased that those affected can return earlier than planned. Those responsible originally planned to take this step towards the middle or end of the month. Work on the protective dam should be completed by the end of 2025.

6.5 meters against 60,000 cubic meters

The 6.5-metre-high protective dam is intended to protect the surrounding houses from the 60,000 cubic meters of sludge that are still at risk of falling. To build it, the municipality had to demolish the buildings that were completely destroyed by two landslides in August 2023. 46 residents lost their homes permanently.

The devastating landslides in Schwanden are among the most expensive single events in Switzerland, as a community representative told the Keystone-SDA news agency in August 2024. The amount of damage amounts to tens of millions. The gross costs for the municipality of Glarus Süd alone amounted to around 18 million Swiss francs. The amount for a new access road, which was destroyed, is still outstanding.

SDA