Winter Storm – Severe Weather In The Bavarian Alps, January 7-8, 2017

January 2017 began with very cold temperatures in Middle Europe. In some places it was 20 degrees below zero. Then it became warmer and in Upper Bavaria and in the Alps there was heavy snowfall. In Mittenwald, which is very close to the Austrian-German border, there was a mass of snow. Snow began falling on Saturday, January 7 and lasted on Sunday for the whole day. This made a big difference to previous years when there was no snow in the Bavarian alpine valleys during the same time of the year and it was much too warm. The severe weather during the first weeks of January caused many traffic accidents but in the alpine region people are well prepared for winter weather. However a weather pattern with a series of low-pressure systems in winter with sudden jumps in temperature pressing against the Alps from the North-West-Atlantic can lead to extreme dangerous situations. In Galtür, Austria, one of the biggest disasters happened in February 1999: afters days of extremr snowfall enormous avalanches hit the village and killed 38 and many people got injured. The village was isolated from the outside-world for days and ended in a spectacular rescue mission with a fleet of helicopters. The catastrophy lead to investigations about responsibility and a a lot of new measures to protect the valley from deadly avalanches. Even today with modern technologies avalanches are a constant danger in the alps. Tourists are always advised to check with local authorities and not leave secured paths during winter. In this situation here the weather calmed down after the weekend of January 6-7. Tourist can enjoy now the valley of Mittenwald and the municipality which has a rich history. It is situated in the valley of the river Isar on the historical route between Germany and Italy. It was also the route from the South to the North in the times of the Roman Empire. Even today you can see an Italian influence in Mittenwald. The municipality is also famous for the manufacture of violins.
/a> Rakuten Affiliate Network Welcome Program There are many walking-paths and streets leading to hotels and cabins in the surrounding mountains. On the East-side there is the impressing Karwendel, a mountain massive with steep rock faces and high mountains. The Karwendel is a extreme territory with a wilderness. On the west side you can get into the Leutasch-Tal, which is on the South-Side of the Zugspitze. Mittenwald is not far from Garmisch-Partenkirchen. There is also a cabin built by King Ludwig II not far away, The Schachenhaus, which can be visited during summertime. Furthermore there is the luxury hotel ELLMAU which was the place of a G7 meeting recently.

Aftermath of a severe storm in Chorin-Forest, Brandenburg / Extreme Sturmfolgen in einem Wald bei Chorin

The severe thunderstorm which was reported in the post from August 20 left an incredible path of destruction near the Chorin cloister in Brandenburg. The pathway, which is used often by hikers and which leads to the village Brodowin was closed for some time.  The amazing thing is that the Chorin forest is a very natural forest with many old trees and there were no signs of weakness before. There must have been tremendous forces at work on August 20, 2012. The images show how serious we should take severe storm warnings:   Ein extremes Gewitter nördlich von Berlin, über das im post vom 20. August berichtet wurde, hat in einem Wald in der Nähe des Kloster Chorin, 80 km nordöstlich von Berlin, unglaubliche Schäden hinterlassen. Der beliebte Wanderweg musste geschlossen werden. Das Überraschende an diesen Zerstörungen ist, dass hier ein sehr natürlicher Wald mit alten Bäumen, die keine erkennbaren Schwächen hatten,  derart zerstört wurde. Es müssen unglaubliche Kräfte an diesem 20. August am Werk gewesen sein. Die Bilder dokumentieren, wie ernst wir Sturmwarnungen nehmen sollten.     Trees intermingled, a whole forest turned upside down: What kind of force could have done this? August 19, 2012 was already one of the hottest days of the year in the Berlin-Brandenburg area and in Germany. Monday got even hotter and air was increasingly humid. Showers and thunderstorms were predicted by weather forecasters for monday evening. “Xenia” a depression over middle Europe transported the warm, humid air. The severe storm around Chorin and Eberswalde however began already in the afternoon. The whole capacity of the firebrigade in the area was needed and had to repair a lot of damage with special equipment. However the extreme destruction as seen in the Chorin Forest was restricted to a small path. Experts suspect that a tornado did these damages.     Ineinander gewickelte Bäume, ein Anblick, der Fragen lässt, was für eine Kraft hier am Werk war: das Chaos machte den Wald zu einem gefährlichen Platz. Bereits der 19. August war in Berlin Brandenburg einer der heißesten Tage ebenso wie in Deutschland. Hitze und Freuchtigkeit steigerten sich noch am Montag. Schauer und Gewitter waren für den Abend vorhergesagt. Tief Xenia über Mitteleuropa schaufelte die feuchte und heiße Luft in diese Breiten.  Das Unwetter über Chorin und Eberswalde nahm jedoch bereits am Nachmittag seinen Anfang. Die gesamten verfügbaren Kräfte der Feuerwehren waren mit speziellen Gerät an diesem Tag im Einsatz um die zahlreichen Unwetterschäden zu beseitigen. Jedoch war die extreme Zerstörung im Choriner Wald in  einem scharf begrenzten Raum geschehen. Experten vermuten einen Tornado. There were reports from a village near the Werbellinsee, Althüttendorf, about severe storm damage which support the theory of a tornado. Mostly the real apocalyptic impressions and the way trees were knocked down gives the theory of a tornado some credibility. Furthermore it is interesting that the most damage occurred on top of the hills near the cloister, which is called the “Choriner Endmoränenbogen” due to its origin from the ice-age. Obviously any kind of structure on the ground could influence developments in the lower atmosphere.

 

Aus Althüttendorf, einem Dorf in der Nähe des bekannten Werbellinsees sind von diesem Tag Sturmschäden gemeldet worden, die die Theorie eines Tornados stützen. Hauptsächlich sind es aber die geradezu apokalyptischen Eindrücke und die Art und Weise wie die Bäume zu Boden gedrückt wurden, die auf einen Tornado hindeuten. Darüber hinaus ist es interessant, dass die meisten Schäden auf der Anhöhe des Choriner Endmoränenbogens in der Nähe des Klosters zu sehen sind, einer in der letzten Eiszeit entstandenen Erhebung. Offenbar wirkt sich jede Art von strukturiertem Untergrund auf das Geschehen in der unteren Atmosphäre aus.