Hail disaster in the Waldviertel: farmers fight for survival!

Hail disaster in the Waldviertel: farmers fight for survival!

On Easter Monday evening, there was a violent hailstan weather in the Waldviertel, which caused considerable damage in several communities. The towns of Waidhofen, Waidhofen-Land, Thaya, Kautzen, Raabs and Dobersberg were particularly affected. According to the fire brigade spokesman Stefan Mayer, the ice cream parlors led to stuck vehicles and flooded cellars. In Großgerharts, an ice layer of up to half a meter was measured, which further tightened the situation.

The fire brigade was deployed with a large contingent, with almost half of the military people working in the Thaya region. The water masses, which resulted from the strong precipitation, washed valuable soil from freshly lined fields into the trenches. The freshly set potatoes hit it particularly hard, while winter rapeseed, which was between 20 and 30 centimeters high, was badly damaged, but partially strikes again.

damage and insurance

Most damage from this storm is covered by hail insurance. These insurance companies are essential for many farmers, especially since only hail damage is insured. According to the Environmental Federal Agency , extreme weather-related events such as drought, hail and storm often lead to the loss of earnings, whereby the damage effort has increased significantly in recent decades. Between 1990 and 2013 weather risks in Germany annual harvest damage of around 510 million euros, with 26 % back to hail.

outlook and challenges

Climate change could, according to experts, lead to weather damage -related harvest damage increasing in the future. Against this background, it is crucial for many companies to secure themselves appropriately. In Germany, only about 1 % of the arable land against drought is currently insured, which is due to high insurance costs and cumulative risks. Some federal states already offer government subsidies for additional hazard insurance to support farmers and to improve protection.

Currently, several federal states, such as Bavaria and Lower Saxony, promote support of up to 50 % of the premium for multi-hazard insurance in the arable and grassland area. Over two thirds of the agricultural areas are insured against hail in Germany. Nevertheless, the challenge of the increasing weather extreme remains that farmers and their harvests often meet unprepared.

Regardless of the current challenges, it is important that farmers find out about the risks and possibilities of insurance in order to make their companies future -proof. The first assessments show that the hail -related risk continues to exist and that the preparation for such extreme weather events is essential.

For more information about the effects of the hailstan weather and the resources of farmers, refers Krone to detailed reports and updates.

Additional insights into the challenges in agriculture also offer the reports on that regularly inform about such developments.