Sturmchaos in the Rhineland: fire brigade operations and blocked highway!

A storm depth caused considerable damage in the Rhineland on Monday, January 6th. There were numerous fire brigade operations in the region, especially in the Rhein-Erft district, where the emergency services had to move out a total of 21 times. According to reports from Radio were mainly demolished branches and kinked trees. An incident in Cologne received special attention, where a Christmas tree fell on rail tracks.

The violent winds meant that in many other cities such as Leverkusen and Solingen, trees and branches fell on sidewalks and streets. In Hennef (east of Bonn), the 560 motorway was blocked in both directions for several hours because parts of a soundproof wall were blown onto the road. To avoid further dangers, some parks already made at noon, and public warnings before a stay outdoors were pronounced.

fire brigade operations and traffic disorders

In addition, the German Weather Service (DWD) warned on the same day of severe storms in the west of North Rhine-Westphalia. This warning, which also affected Bonn and the surrounding circles, was until evening. As ga.de , it was twelve stubborn missions of the fire brigade, which mainly Elimination of fallen branches concentrated on the streets. In the Rhein-Sieg district, the fire brigade recorded a total of 40 missions by 8:30 p.m., here too there were kinked trees and branches the main cause.

rail traffic was severely restricted because numerous routes were not navigable due to fallen trees that damaged the overhead lines. In some cases, the railway companies organized rail replacement traffic and there were delays in long -distance transport between Cologne and Aachen as well as Cologne and Düsseldorf. In addition, an overturned tractor -trailer on the A61 near Plaidt caused further impairments of traffic, whereby the driver was luckily unharmed and was taken to the hospital as a precaution.