Despite weeks of high temperatures, Austria's dry ground was unable to absorb heavy flash flooding that fell overnight.
ADVERTISEMENTAustria experienced severe flash floods over the weekend.
Meteorologists reported record amounts of rainfall in the western region over the past 24 hours. Places most affected include the mountainous area of Voralberg.
Wolfurt in the lower Rhine Valley is one of the communities in Vorarlberg that has been particularly affected by the storms. Streams flooded the centre of the village last night, followed by mudslides.
Firefighters worked tirelessly to clear up impacted roads and villages. Over 1,500 calls were made to clear up floods or mudslides in the area. Luckily, however, no injuries or casualties were reported in Voralberg
An important section of the Rhine Valley motorway (A14) was closed for hours, bringing traffic in the Lower Rhine Valley to a standstill. However, an end to the rain around midnight brought significant relief.
In Dornbirn, numerous houses, garages, and streets were flooded. In nearby Schwarzach, a disaster alert was also triggered.
Train traffic was also affected. Rail services between Lindau and Bregenz were temporarily suspended early Saturday morning.
Elsewhere, the severe rainfall also hit southern Bavaria, Germany. Regional police reported that at least five people were killed as a result of fallen trees.