– We are all excited, says Haakon Innseth, head of construction and property, Voss herad municipality. Crisis staff have been deployed in Voss district and on Wednesday they put up the fence around the cultural center and the sports hall in Voss. – I do it because I have to free up capacity for tomorrow, when I have to go out in the rain and look at ditches and culverts. So we hope that our citizens will do the same, says mayor of Voss herad, Tonje Såkvitne. Extreme amounts of rainfall are expected in Western Norway on Thursday. Photo: Meteorological Institute In addition to Voss herad, the municipalities of Ullensvang and Luster have seen emergency staff before the extreme weather strikes. In Sunnfjord, crews have been out clearing manhole covers to prevent them from clogging and overflowing. – We have several thousand manhole covers in the whole municipality and we managed only a fraction today. We just have to see how far we can get tomorrow, says Thomas Bruket in the outdoor section in Sunnfjord municipality. NVE has issued a red danger warning for landslides and mudslides. – Serious situation The extreme weather that hits Western Norway on Thursday has been named “Jakob”. – We are expecting locally up to 180 mm of rainfall in a day, says state meteorologist Geir Ottar Fagerlid. The warning will apply from Thursday morning to Thursday evening and will affect central and inner areas in Vestland. The danger warning for landslides and mudslides has been upgraded to a red level and will apply to parts of Vestland, Møre og Romsdal and Rogaland. – It is a very serious situation and it is rare that we have this type of warning, says Aart Verhage in NVE. In addition, the flood warning has been upgraded to a red level for large parts of Vestland. A red danger warning for soil and mudslides has been reported for parts of Møre and Romsdal, Vestland and Rogaland. Photo: NVE Increases preparedness As a result of the extreme weather, the National Communications Authority has chosen to increase preparedness. – When extreme weather is now forecast in large parts of Møre and Romsdal, Vestland and Rogaland, there are opportunities for breaks in both the power grid and the electricity grid. Nkom has therefore raised the level of preparedness, and at the same time asks the economic operators to report if they experience small or major incidents that affect access to the internet and mobile telephony, says security director at Nkom, Svein Scheie. BKK, which operates the power grid in several places in Vestland, has chosen to increase preparedness due to the extreme weather. – We have increased preparedness so that we can quickly deal with any incidents that arise as a result of the reported storm, says Truls Reed Tystad in BKK. The company reports that error corrections may take longer if there is a risk of mudslides and avalanches where crews are out in the field. Clear advice The county emergency manager in Vestland had a meeting with the municipalities, emergency services, meteorologists and NVE on Wednesday. – We have done this to ensure that everyone has the same understanding of what awaits us, says Haavard Stensvand. During the meeting, NVE gave encouragement to the municipalities that are affected. – We advise people to stay away from steep slopes, streams and rivers with large water flows. The individual can check around their house, that gutters and sumps are open, says Aart Verhage. Every year there are new storms and storms in the world that get different names, but who decides these? And can a storm be called anything? – Intense Precipitation is expected to be more intense than during the extreme weather “Gyda”. – We had extreme weather in Møre and Romsdal and Trøndelag in 2022, which was somewhat the same situation. It brought a lot of rain over two days. This time there is a little more intense rainfall, says Fagerlid. In 2022, the extreme weather Gyda led to great destruction in Møre and Romsdal and Trøndelag. Photo: John J. Storholt Roads may be closed It is expected that the extreme weather will have major consequences for travellers. – There is a great danger of closed roads and/or stormwater at streams and rivers. Many journeys may have longer journey times, the notice states. In the event of an extreme warning, extreme consequences are expected as a result of the weather. There will be a great danger that lives will be lost, and there can be great destruction to property and infrastructure. Authorities and people in the affected area should take measures and reduce traffic where the extreme warning applies. Warmer, wetter and wilder Climate change has already changed where, how often and how strongly the world experiences floods, and can lead to more and more serious landslides, according to the UN climate panel. This is, among other things, because Europe and other parts of the world have experienced a lot of extreme rainfall in recent years the years. Man-made climate change is already increasing the chance of the rain becoming so extreme. Lars Tore Endresen / news What has happened so far? When the temperature rises, more water evaporates, and the atmosphere can hold more water. This means that the precipitation becomes more concentrated and intense, according to the climate panel. They say that spring floods come earlier than before, and that floods come more often and more powerfully than before in many places in the world. The Norwegian Public Roads Administration What do we know about landslides? Increased rainfall and melting of snow and glaciers can also increase the risk of landslides, especially in steep mountain areas. In addition to climate change, population growth and tourism are also factors that make landslides more likely in the future, because there will be more pressure on nature. Can we do something about it? The less greenhouse gases the world emits in the coming years, the less warming we will get. Then the risk of extreme weather linked to water will also decrease. In addition, there are measures such as warning systems and better planning of infrastructure, which can limit the worst damage. Countries around the world have pledged to try to limit warming to 1.5 degrees. With today’s policy, we are facing 2.8 degrees of warming, according to UNEP. Published 30.10.2024, at 09.59 Updated 30.10.2024, at 15.41
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Municipality set up crisis staff and prepare for extreme weather “Jakob” – news Vestland
