Fels avalanche in the Valais: Blaten under masses from glaciers and rubble!

Fels avalanche in the Valais: Blaten under masses from glaciers and rubble!

On May 28, 2025, a dramatic glacier canceled above the Swiss village of Blatten, which led to the burial of several parts of the village. According to Schwäbische , a large part of the pirchchers set in motion with massive scree and reached the evacuated Settlement. While the number of spilled houses is high, luckily there have been no personal injury, apart from a missing person.

STADE of the natural disaster is the area around the small Nesthorn, where around 3.5 million cubic meters of rock crashed into the pirch glacier in the days before the demolition. This massive increase in rubble load led to a very large abortion, which has been considered the largest since the beginning of the surveillance, such as the NZZ

evacuation measures and population development

The danger situation became clear the previous week, so that around 300 inhabitants of the village had to be evacuated. The demolition on Tuesday night, the large amount of ice, rock, snow and water fell into the valley, underlined the urgency of this measure. The evacuation took place on May 22, 2025. Federal President Karin Keller-Sutter expressed her sympathy for the affected residents, while the canton of Valais asked for support for the army.

Switzerland is a country that is particularly susceptible to natural hazards like clots due to its geological conditions and the topography. In an overview of the heaviest clots of the past 25 years, it becomes clear that the current event has serious dimensions. A look at the story shows that the last big clash in the Valais took place in Bondo in August 2017, where over 3 million cubic meters of rock broke off ( SRF ).

The tragic event in Blatten has once again focused on the special hazard of the region. The population remains on alert, while the authorities are increasingly working on the securing of the region.