During the night into Wednesday, a storm swept across many parts of Switzerland. In the regions of Emmen-Hochdorf LU and Zofingen AG -Triengen LU, the second highest danger level was in effect for a time. Thunderstorms and rain caused damage, particularly in the Zurich area.
One affected person from the municipality of Embrach ZH says she had to wait five hours for the fire department after making an emergency call about her flooded cellar. “The fire department was in the neighborhood all night and helped everywhere. They did a lot.” Some residents still have to get by without electricity and hot water on Wednesday morning.
63-year-old Christian Utzinger, owner of the “Obermüli Forellen” farm, says: “The water comes from a small stream that flows through the forest above us.” He has never seen so much water before; the entire processing room is under water. He cannot yet say how the trout are doing. “I hope the dirty water has not affected them.”
Matthias Keller (44) from Embrach ZH was also affected by the heavy storms. The basement of his family home was about 40 centimeters under water. “It started to rain at eleven o’clock in the evening. Then the storm cell simply stopped over Embrach and became even more violent.” The ground initially absorbed the large amount of water, “but when the heavy rain subsided, the stream suddenly appeared shortly after midnight.”
The dirty water flowed directly towards his house. “We tried to dam it with boards, but it was all to no avail: the cellar was flooded.” He and the fire brigade tried to get the situation under control until four in the morning. “It was a short night.” Everything was covered in dirt and mud, especially the wine cellar of his father, who is a hobby winemaker. “It’s so sad.” He is now looking into it with the insurance company. But even if the cellar is renovated and he has a new wine cellar at some point: “I would rather keep the old one and not have to do all this work.”
A toad has even settled in the basement of 79-year-old Verena. “It’s just hidden under a suitcase.” 20-Minuten reporter Céline Trachsel transports the toad in a flowerpot from Giger’s basement and releases it into the open next to a stream. “Jump!” she tells the toad. Which it finally does after a brief moment of shock.
Another news scout from Embrach reports that his ground-floor apartment was flooded. He was alerted to this by his dog, who was barking loudly. “Everything is flooded, not a dry spot is left,” he writes. He had to get himself and his dog to safety and had to find emergency accommodation for the night. “I had to pack my bag quickly. Pants, socks, dog food and leave.” He suspects that all the furniture was damaged. “I’ll see about that later in the day.”
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