The fire departments in the Waidhofen an der Thaya district put in a great performance: since Sunday afternoon, 520 firefighters have been working on 150 roofs in the villages of Rappolz, Waldkirchen, Gilgenberg and Lexnitz to provisionally seal them with 104,000 m2 of tarpaulins. Almost no building was unharmed by the devastating storm with hailstones up to seven centimetres in size.

Dangerous task for helpers
Due to the risky work on the steep and slippery roofs, the Red Cross was on site to be able to help quickly if necessary, thanked Stefan Mayer from the district fire brigade command for the good cooperation. Hand in hand with companies and other helpers, emergency organizations and authorities, they were able to help quickly and efficiently, according to those affected.

The last building was their "own"
The last building to be covered was the fire station in Rappolz, where the hail had completely destroyed the roof. In Gilgenbeg, wasps nesting in several roof trusses made the work more difficult - protective clothing was necessary in the bright sunshine. Mayer also emphasized that they had 20,000 m² of additional tarpaulin in stock: "So that we are prepared if heavy rain, storms or thunderstorms tear down one or two temporary structures."

Lessons learned from the past
The funds for emergency aid were increased to 1.5 million euros by the state government. Lessons were learned after the severe hailstorm in Allentsteig in 2021. This time, three more villages - Brunn bei Dobersberg, Waldhers and Reibers - were declared disaster locations. Although the hail only hit a few properties there, the victims have a chance of receiving money from the disaster fund, which was not the case in 2021.

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