Photos show the picturesque Swiss village that had to evacuate because 70 million cubic feet of rock could come spilling down the mountainside

Associated Press,Rebecca HarringtonMay 16, 2023, 00:42 IST

Residential buildings and a church stand in front of the "Brienzer Rutsch" the rockfall danger zone in Brienz-Brinzauls, Switzerland, on Friday, May 12, 2023.AP Photo/Arnd Wiegmann

Residents of Brienz, Switzerland, had to evacuate because a massive rockslide threatens to spill.
The centuries-old Alpine village is home to under 100 residents, who were told to leave last week.

BRIENZ, Switzerland (AP) — Stragglers packed up belongings in cars, trucks and a least one pickup truck before an evacuation order took effect on Friday in a tiny village in eastern Switzerland that is facing an urgent rockslide threat.

As geologists and other experts in fluorescent vests took measurements on Friday, villagers and vacationers bared their emotion that the centuries-old Alpine village of Brienz — home to under 100 residents — could be soon be subsumed under spilling rock.

Swiss authorities say about 2 million cubic meters of rock on an Alpine mountainside overhead could soon come crashing down.

View of the "Brienzer Rutsch" the rockfall danger zone in Brienz-Brinzauls, Switzerland, Friday, May 12, 2023.AP Photo/Arnd Wiegmann

One boulder sat menacingly next to a small wood cabin.

Residential buildings stand in front of the "Brienzer Rutsch" the rockfall danger zone in Brienz-Brinzauls, Switzerland, Friday, May 12, 2023.AP Photo/Arnd Wiegmann

Authorities set a 6 p.m. deadline on Friday for residents to evacuate.

Residential buildings stand in front of the "Brienzer Rutsch" the rockfall danger zone in Brienz-Brinzauls, Switzerland, Friday, May 12, 2023.AP Photo/Arnd Wiegmann

Last week, authorities upgraded the alert status to "orange."

A road is blocked in front of the "Brienzer Rutsch" rockfall danger zone in Brienz-Brinzauls, Switzerland, Friday, May 12, 2023.AP Photo/Arnd Wiegmann

By Friday evening, authorities had raised the alert to "red."

A road is blocked in front of the "Brienzer Rutsch" rockfall danger zone in Brienz-Brinzauls, Switzerland, Friday, May 12, 2023.AP Photo/Arnd Wiegmann

Barriers blocked off roads and a sign under a portable traffic light read: "Extreme danger of rockfall when red."

A warning sign is seen in front of the "Brienzer Rutsch" the rockfall danger zone in Brienz-Brinzauls, Switzerland, Friday, May 12, 2023.AP Photo/Arnd Wiegmann

Centuries-old Brienz straddles German- and Romansch-speaking parts of the eastern Graubunden region.

The village of Brienz-Brinzauls, Switzerland, is at the foot of the Brienzer Rothorn mountain.Google Maps

The mountain and the rocks on it have been moving since the last Ice Age, officials say.

View on the "Brienzer Rutsch" the rockfall danger zone in Brienz-Brinzauls, Switzerland, Friday, May 12, 2023.AP Photo/Arnd Wiegmann

Gartmann said experts estimate a 60% chance the rock will fall in smaller chunks.

A furniture transport truck drives into the village Brienz in Brienz-Brinzauls, Switzerland, Friday, May 12, 2023.AP Photo/Arnd Wiegmann

Glacier melt has affected the precariousness of the rocks over millennia.

View of the village and the "Brienzer Rutsch", taken in Brienz-Brinzauls, Switzerland, on Friday, May 12, 2023.AP Photo/Arnd Wiegmann

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