Landslide Only hours or days to go until the big rockslide in Brienz GR
On Monday, several small rockfalls occurred above the Grisons mountain village of Brienz. In the meantime, a gully has formed from which more rock is falling. Geologists expect the plateau above to collapse in the next few hours or days.
24.11.2025, 16:11
SDA
"We expect it to take hours to days, not days to weeks, for the eastern plateau to fall away," said Christian Gartmann, communications officer for the responsible municipality of Albula, when asked by the Keystone-SDA news agency. The rockfalls on Monday were still small and posed no danger to the village.
"We expect an accumulation of rockfalls before a major collapse," Gartmann continued. After that, a rockfall with a volume of up to 300,000 cubic meters could occur. This corresponds to the volume of around 300 detached houses.
The greatest danger for the village is that these masses of rock could fall onto the rubble heap below. Together with the rock there, a total of one million cubic meters of debris could start moving towards Brienz - either as a so-called debris flow or even as a rock avalanche.
"I have mixed feelings about the situation," explained the head of the Department of Infrastructure, Energy and Mobility, Carmelia Maissen (center), in an interview with Keystone-SDA on Monday. On the one hand, there is hope that there will be more clarity about future developments on the mountain after a rockfall or landslide, giving the people of Brienz, who have already been evacuated for over a year, more reliable prospects.
On the other hand, there is also the possibility that much will remain unclear afterwards. "We have no choice but to respect the rhythm of nature," said the councillor.
