Ten people missing after landslides

– We believe with considerable certainty that there are people in the landslide area.

This was said by the head of tasks in the eastern police district, Roger Pettersen, at 8.15 pm.

At a press conference on the 22.15, the head of health operations, André Tiller, stressed that as long as it is a rescue operation, they will not surrender.

– We don’t give up. We have a built-in force here that allows us to respond on very short notice if necessary, says Tiller.

The number of people who have not been counted after the Gjerdrum landslide in Romerike in Viken County dropped from 11 to 10 at 10:30 pm Wednesday night. 26 people were first reported missing in the avalanche. Since then, the number has been lowered several times.

During the last press release on Wednesday night at 11pm, police say they are now considering sending dogs with a guide. Until now, drones and helicopters have been used to get close to the landslide area.

– We will continually consider lowering the rescuer with a dog in places that are considered safe, says the task leader.

This will happen when a helicopter takes the rescuer and the dog to the area.

Approximately 1,000 people have been evacuated from the area. The plan is to evacuate 1,500.

It is not yet known if the people who have now been counted have been removed from the landslide area or if they have been elsewhere.

– We still keep open the possibility that more people have evacuated, have not contacted the police, or are in the red zone where we are looking, Pettersen said in an interview with TV 2 at 18.35.

He emphasizes that the rescue team is still looking for survivors, not dead.

– There is hope, he says.

At the same time, Prime Minister Erna Solberg is aware that Norway must also prepare for the fact that bad news may be just around the corner:

– I am glad that the number has decreased during the day and I hope it is even lower, but I think we must be careful that there are some inside these houses, said the Prime Minister in Dagsrevyen on Wednesday evening.

Looking for more in the dark

Around 8pm, the task leader further states that they now have drones in the air and a helicopter that continuously monitors and scans the site.

– This is to see if something happens in the landslide and to see if we get any signs of life from people who may be in the landslide, says operations manager Roger Pettersen during the sound of the Sea King helicopters still They look for those who have not been made. take into account the landslide situation.

– Darkness has come and presents us with challenges. We will illuminate the place with light sources as much as possible, but there will be a limitation.

The police have deployed additional investigative resources to get an overview of the people. Pettersen said early Wednesday that 14 addresses, with a different number of apartments, are affected.

So far, it has been confirmed that ten people were injured. According to the person in charge of the task, one of them was sent to the Ullevål hospital with serious injuries.

900 people have been affected or evacuated in connection with the landslide, but the task leader emphasizes that the number is constantly changing.

– The weather is still bad, it makes it difficult and demanding. But so far there are no findings. We have not confirmed the death so far, nor have I received any further confirmation that more have been injured, Pettersen says.

Read also: The Gjerdrum landslide: we know it

Working conditions are demanding: for safety reasons, it is not possible for ground personnel to enter the core of the landslide area. Therefore, evacuation and rescue work in this area must be carried out by Sea King helicopters.

– These are extremely demanding decisions to be made: Implement or not implement rescue work. We are considering whether we can take further action in the area, says Pettersen.

At 4.40 in the afternoon, the police reported that three more houses had fallen in the red zone.

– We cannot ignore that several houses will suffer the same fate, since they are buildings located on the edge of the avalanche in an area where the edge is very high.

Among the evacuees are residents and employees of the Gjerdrum nursing home life and treatment center.

– Everyone is doing well. We have also evacuated from some apartments in the vicinity, which is going well, says head of health tasks Hans Christian Jørgensen.

NVE: Danger of more houses being taken over

The regional manager of the Eastern Region at NVE, Toril Hofshagen, describes the landslide as the largest rapid clay landslide in recent times – 300 times 700 meters.

– There are still projectiles in the avalanche pits, and we don’t have full control over how far it will go before it stops, he says.

Throughout the morning and into the morning, NVE has conducted ongoing evaluations of the police and emergency services regarding evacuation and rescue efforts.

– There is a danger that more houses will be taken. The landslide still continues, emphasizes the regional manager.

It is too early to say anything about the causal connection, but NVE has installed a drilling rig in the area and will begin investigations as soon as justifiable.

– The causal connection will likely be the subject of careful investigation. It can be caused by nature, but there can also be other causes. We have to get back to that, says Hofshagen.

When asked if it would be possible to bring crews to the innermost areas today, she responds:

– It is a very large area that we are talking about. In some areas it is advisable, in others not. Then they must save themselves from the air.

The earth turned liquid

The danger of multiple landslides makes search and rescue difficult. Researcher Louise Vick from the Department of Geosciences at the University of Tromsø tells VG that it may take time before crews can descend into the landslide area.

– They will probably wait for the weather to stabilize and will also look for signs of future instability in the ground. You can see that a landslide is about to be caused by water coming from the ground or that there is less landslide along the edge of the wound.

She explains that the researchers are probably now taking soil samples from different depths to analyze what type of soil it is. That way, they can begin the work of finding the cause of the landslide.

– Based on that, they will find out what other areas are at risk. Often when these races occur, the races will also move up streams, so what may start out as a small landslide can be a major event, says Vick.

According to the researcher, fast clay is a rather unique Scandinavian problem. It was formed by sediments that were left behind by glaciers thousands of years ago and exposed to the air, and they turn liquid under pressure.

– Now they’re probably looking for what made the camp float. There can be a lot of precipitation, snowmelt, or human intervention, for example, because too much weight was placed on the ground, he explains.

It was the Defense Forum that first mentioned the Orion aircraft.

– The aircraft has been used mainly in searches based on its sensor capacity. We don’t know how long it will last, but we have many other capabilities that are also used. The two Bell 412 planes we have sent from Rygge are used for search and rescue and personnel transport, says Barclay Gaasland.