Hard bids in Mellerud.
60 to 70 millimeters of rain in two hours.
Flooded basements have been emptied – but concerns remain as more rain is expected.
Torrential rain. Flood. Moisture damage.
Such was the course of events of Han’s first day in Mellerud.
The rain that fell at 08:30 and two hours ahead usually comes during the whole month of August in the resort. All morning, the rescue service struggled to empty almost 40 water-filled basements.
Elisabet Levin, 73, had several decimeters of water all over the basement floor in her villa.
– There was water up to the second step. My plastic trays floated around, even though there are heavy things in them, she says.
The emergency services only came and pumped out the basement at lunchtime.
Must be sanitized and dehumidified
When they left, dirt and moisture remained. A representative from the fire protection association came and documented the moisture damage. The basement is contaminated – it must be cleaned and dehumidified as soon as possible.
At the same time, the cellar can be filled again in the next 24 hours. And Elisabet wonders what no one can answer.
– How much more rain can there be?
Regardless, the hope lies with the insurance companies. But she cannot escape the deductible.
– I don’t know if I will actually be able to handle that cost.
She and her husband bought the house a year ago. Last spring they bought a car and started a window renovation that cost over SEK 170,000.
But two months ago he died.
– It has been tough. I have had a lot of help from my children. But this feels like a setback, she says.
Worry about more water
A couple of blocks away lives Helga Gullborn, 80.
She was awakened by the storm at 3 a.m. by the storm and predicted disaster. Then she offered a couple of towels which she stuffed for the wells in the basement. But it wasn’t enough.
A couple of hours later she also had water up her shins.
– I had to call the municipality, but they had a lot to do. I’ve been working all day. Actually, I was going to the 70th birthday party, but it won’t be like that now. It was an incredibly crazy day, she says.
When the emergency services did not come immediately, she got help from the neighbors to pump away all the water. Now the finishing work remains. At the same time, it’s not over.
– There will be more to come. But I hope for the towels.
SMHI’s forecast of warnings is constantly changing. Previously there was a red warning for high water flows and heavy rain, but now things have calmed down. The rescue service follows the weather development.
– We have tried to prepare with water pumps and information to the residents. For now, we hope that there will be no more and that it will get the sick away now. But we’ll see, says Peter Telander, station commander at Norra Älvsborg’s rescue service.