First forecast

Automatically saved draft

Investments in flood protection have prevented even greater damage, and overall Austria is well prepared for possible flooding.(Bild: APA/HELMUT FOHRINGER)

The storm in mid-September caused enormous damage in Austria - both to private individuals and companies. Investments in flood protection prevented major damage.

The first estimate by the Supply Chain Intelligence Institute Austria (ASCII), the Austrian Institute of Economic Research (Wifo) and the Complexity Science Hub (CSH) now amounts to €1.3 billion. 

The flood damage amounts to 1.3 billion euros, including 700 million euros for private households. Production losses and damage to businesses were estimated at between 300 and 900 million euros, while the agricultural sector suffered 14.7 million euros in damage.

Infrastructure damage amounted to 1.8 billion euros
Infrastructure damage, for example to the ÖBB, was not taken into account; including this, the total damage could amount to 1.8 billion euros.

The fact that the damage was not even higher is also due to the preventative measures taken in recent years - not least because 60 million euros are invested in flood protection every year. 

The floods in 2002 caused damage amounting to three billion euros, while flood damage of 0.9 billion euros was recorded in 2013. The construction of flood protection walls and dams, as well as the introduction of alarms, contributed to the reduction.

There is still room for improvement in terms of compensation for those affected. The disaster fund in Lower Austria currently provides for up to 80 percent coverage in cases of hardship.