Vienna hit by record rainfall, nearly average summer total in just one hour, Austria

Heavy rains struck Austria over the weekend, particularly affecting the Alpine regions and Vienna. The torrential downpours caused severe flooding, with record rainfall recorded in parts of Vienna, leading to significant damage and disruption to transport.

Vienna’s Doebling district experienced a record-breaking downpour on Saturday, August 17, 2024, with 110 mm (4.33 inches) of rain, setting a new August record for the city. Typically, Vienna sees 68 mm (2.68 inches) of rain for the entire month of August.

While the all-time record for a single day remains 139 mm (5.47 inches) from May 15, 1885, the intense rainfall on Saturday, according to ORF Vienna meteorologist Kevin Hebenstreit, nearly matched the city’s average summer total in just one hour.

In Vienna, the heavy rain caused widespread chaos, particularly in the Doebling area, where a woman was critically injured after being swept under a bus by the floodwaters on Saturday.

The flooding also led to extensive disruptions in road and rail transport across the capital. The city’s fire services were overwhelmed, responding to more than 450 emergency calls on Saturday as residents grappled with the effects of the downpours.

In St. Anton, located in western Austria, torrents of muddy water swept through the ski resort town, carrying cars along in the fast-moving currents. This incident occurred on Friday, August 16, and was captured in footage shared on social media.

Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer acknowledged the widespread damage caused by the storms across the country. In a statement on social media platform X, he expressed gratitude to the officials and emergency workers who were engaged in the cleanup and recovery efforts.

References:

¹ Austria battles major flooding after record downpours – Reuters – August 18, 2024

Teo Blašković

I'm a dedicated researcher, journalist, and editor at The Watchers. With over 20 years of experience in the media industry, I specialize in hard science news, focusing on extreme weather, seismic and volcanic activity, space weather, and astronomy, including near-Earth objects and planetary defense strategies. You can reach me at teo /at/ watchers.news.

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