Almost a week ago, Anved Varberg had a cabin with a boathouse in Eidfjord. Then extreme weather “Jakob” came to Vestland, while Varberg was on holiday in Spain. The Erdal River flowed over and cascaded through the cabin field, washing both the cabin and the boathouse on the fjord. – It’s just a miracle that no one died, says Varberg. The boathouse below the house also disappeared into the fjord. Through recordings from a camera in the cabin, he could see what had happened the following morning. – The river went up the wall on the boathouse, and started to eat its way into the wall towards the cabin. Four minutes later, the power went out, and at 4.40 in the morning, the cabin floated on the lake, says Varberg. Now we have to get a valuer to visit to assess the damage, get the building and interior picked up from the fjord and have the damage covered by the insurance company. Hardanger Folkeblad mentioned Varberg’s loss first. Fear of collapse and danger to life Several places have needed clean-up after the extreme weather “Jakob” hit Western Norway. A bridge that broke in Ullensvang has been replaced with a spare bridge. Several roads that were closed have reopened. At the same time, the claim reports are ticking in to the insurance company. The largest insurance companies have together reported more than 365 claims. Of these, Gjensidige has received around 180. – Based on what was announced, this is much better than we had feared, says Bjarne Aani Rysstad, communications manager at Gjensidige. Mats Stordal Gjensidige: Over 180 damage reports Gjensidige received around 180 damage reports. Bjarne Aani Rysstad, communications manager at Gjensidige, says it is a task, both for public authorities and individuals, to prepare for extreme weather. – You can do everything from cleaning gutters to to open streams, rivers. In the cities you can have green roofs, and there you also have to open up old streams.Tryg: 55 damage reportsTryg had registered 55 damage reports on 5 November. – The majority of this is water damage to buildings, leaky roofs, and there is water in basements . We have a lot of damage to furniture, commercial buildings, car damage, says communications adviser Torbjørn Brandeggen in Tryg. He himself was on a road trip to Voss during “Jakob” and said it seemed that many people had heard messages not to take the car out on vegan. Nadir Alam / news If: 50 damage reports If has received around 50 damage reports, but the number may increase, says press manager Sigmund Clementz. – The vast majority of damages are water intrusion into houses and businesses. There are quite a few who have got water in their basements. And then there are a number of leaky roofs through which the rainwater has penetrated, he says. Frende Frende: 40 damage reports Frende reports 40 damage reports, after streams and surface water found new paths, into houses, garages and properties. Rainwater has entered, and cars have been damaged. – It is a bit early to calculate the amount of damage, because things always take time with water damage. What can be thrown away, what needs to be replaced, how much does the repair cost in total, says communications manager Heidi Tofterå Slettemoen in Frende.Fremtind: 40 damage reportsFremtind had registered 40 damage reports as of Tuesday 5 November. He believes that the number of damage reports is low, partly because many were well prepared before the extreme weather. He points out that the meteorologists have “done a great job and forecast very well and precisely”. – I have seen that some municipalities have taken good measures. Because some of them have gained a lot of experience with fluff events. At Voss, among other things, they had taken a number of measures and set up flounder protection, which is very good. – When there is a red warning, what do they fear most? – Simply that many people get hit. Water damage is bad enough. In Western Norway, there has been particular unrest around this landslide. Then I talk about life and health in a completely different way. On Wednesday morning, the technical agency at Voss set up the fencing around municipal buildings along Vangsvatnet. At the time, the danger warning was still at orange level. Photo: Voss herad On Thursday evening, Aurland municipality put up a flood fence along the Flåmselvi when the water flow was about 150 cubic meters per second. On 180 cubic metres, the municipality has decided that the fence must be in place. Photo: Kjell Bøe Bjørgum Mayor of Aurland says the crew is well acquainted with how they install the flaum fence and that it is important that it is easy to use. Elv got into the hotel Britt Marie Grieg is one of the drivers at the Ullensvang hotel at Lofthus in Hardanger. Now they are waiting for the appraiser. Together with representatives from the insurance company, they will go on a visual inspection. – What I am doing now is completely absurd. This was not what I was supposed to do. After a river took a new path, and into the historic hotel, they worked hard to save irreplaceable art and furniture. Britt Marie Grieg became the weight of the night watch at Ullensvang hotel during the extreme weather. After that, there has been a lot of work to reduce the damage to what was an overrun hotel. Photo: Dina Gjertine Svendal Kleiven / news There is no doubt that the damage is nevertheless great. – I will not speculate, but I understand that there is terrible damage to the building. How extensive it is on the electrical system, for example, we cannot yet see with the naked eye, but we can see that the damage is extensive. There was supposed to be a party in this room. Nothing came of it. Photo: Britt marie grieg Focusing on opening again At Ullensvang hotel they have got a lot of water out, but the moisture is still there and has left its mark on the whole hotel. The hall is empty. The damage shows. Cleaning is in full swing at the Ullensvang hotel after the extreme weather “Jakob”. The floor has suffered extensive damage. Many on the move. – We think that “oh”, here we should have had a meeting, here we should have had a conference, here there should have been guests, we should have had a big party. Christmas is approaching, and I was supposed to decorate for it, but it’s actually a bit of a waste now. Now the focus is on getting started again. – It will be nice when everything is back in place. I’m going back to where I was. Grieg says they are not actually afraid that the building itself and the hotel will be hit by extreme weather again. They are rather worried about vegans who go to the hotel. Photo: Dina Gjertine Svendal Kleiven / news I think you have to prepare for more Rysstad in Gjensidige says that you have to prepare for extreme weather in the future. There are fans in several rooms to dry things up at the Ullensvang hotel. Photo: Dina Gjertine Svendal Kleiven / news – I wish even more money had been allowed for prevention. It is crystal clear that every kroner spent on prevention is worth more when it comes to reducing future injuries. Press manager Clementz at If says, that when there is trouble, it is also the case where you cannot do anything to prevent injuries. But, one has the opportunity to do something, he believes. – For example, that you think about where you put up buildings. Should they stand as close to the river as they have done in the past? One may have to think about whether we need all these asphalted surfaces, or whether they can be replaced with surfaces that absorb water. The clean-up work in Hardanger is in full swing after the extreme weather. Published 06.11.2024, at 09.35 Updated 06.11.2024, at 09.51
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The insurance company has received fewer claims than feared after the extreme weather “Jakob” – news Vestland
