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Bern residents warned to boil water after thunderstorms sweep Switzerland

Residents of the Swiss canton of Bern have been warned to boil water, after storms caused flooding across much of the region.

Published: 8 July 2022 09:43 CEST
Bern residents have been warned to boil their water. Photo by Sasikan Ulevik on Unsplash
Bern residents have been warned to boil their water. Photo by Sasikan Ulevik on Unsplash

The storms started on Sunday in the west of the country and moved eastward, dousing central Switzerland with water. 

The canton of Bern was particularly hard hit, with images showing flooded houses and basements, along with damaged roads and paths. 

Some of the floodwater made it into drinking water supplies, with authorities warning residents to boil the potentially contaminated supplies before drinking. 

The EWK warned residents of Herzogenbuchsee, Aeschi (Steinhof), Hellsau, Höchstetten, Seeberg, Thörigen and Willadingen on Thursday to boil their water. 

“Boiling guarantees the killing of pathogens,” the statement said. 

“We recommend using mineral water for drinking and as baby food. Have you already consumed the polluted drinking water? Observe yourself, if you develop a high fever, diarrhoea and/or vomiting within 48 hours, consult a doctor.”

The EWK also warned that the water might smell and taste of chlorine in the coming days, but that this posed no damage to health. 

“The drinking water is now being treated and a mains flushing is being carried out. As a result, the water may have a distinct odour or taste of chlorine over the next few days”

Even brushing teeth or washing dishes with the water still risks contamination. Showering, washing clothes and using the dishwasher does not risk contamination, according to the EWK. 

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WEATHER

IN PICTURES: ‘Exceptional’ Sahara dust cloud hits Europe

An "exceptional" dust cloud from the Sahara is choking parts of Europe, the continent's climate monitor said on Monday, causing poor air quality and coating windows and cars in grime.

Published: 8 April 2024 14:15 CEST
IN PICTURES: 'Exceptional' Sahara dust cloud hits Europe

Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service said the latest plume, the third of its kind in recent weeks, was bringing hazy conditions to southern Europe and would sweep northward as far as Scandinavia.

Mark Parrington, senior scientist at Copernicus, said the latest event was related to a weather pattern that has brought warmer weather to parts of Europe in recent days.

“While it is not unusual for Saharan dust plumes to reach Europe, there has been an increase in the intensity and frequency of such episodes in recent years, which could be potentially attributed to changes in atmospheric circulation patterns,” he said.

This latest episode has caused air quality to deteriorate in several countries, Copernicus said.

The European Union’s safe threshold for concentrations of PM10 — coarser particles like sand and dust that that can irritate the nose and throat — has already been exceeded in some locations.

A picture taken on April 8, 2024 shows a rapeseed field under thick sand dust blown in from the Sahara, giving the sky a yellowish appearance near Daillens, western Switzerland. – An “exceptional” dust cloud from the Sahara is choking parts of Europe, the continent’s climate monitor said, causing poor air quality and coating windows and cars in grime. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)

The worst affected was the Iberian Peninsula in Spain but lesser air pollution spikes were also recorded in parts of Switzerland, France and Germany.

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Local authorities in southeastern and southern France announced that the air pollution threshold was breached on Saturday.

They advised residents to avoid intense physical activity, particularly those with heart or respiratory problems.

The dust outbreak was expected to reach Sweden, Finland and northwest Russia before ending on Tuesday with a shift in weather patterns, Copernicus said.

The Sahara emits between 60 and 200 million tonnes of fine dust every year, which can travel thousands of kilometres (miles), carried by winds and certain meteorological conditions.

The Spanish Canary Islands off the coast of northwest Africa saw just 12 days within a 90-day period from December to February where skies were free of Saharan dust, the local weather agency Aemet had reported.

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