Austrian hotel evacuated after heavy snow cracked roof

A hotel in Upper Austria was evacuated Saturday after heavy snow on its roof caused wooden beams to crack, according to Austrian news reports.

Photo: Austrian hotel evacuated after heavy snow cracked roof

About 170 guests of the hotel in Windischgarsten were forced to leave, and the roof over the dining room had to be propped up, the Austrian Press Agency reported.

"When I went to bed on the second floor last night, I could hear the cracking," an unidentified hotel guest told Austrian broadcaster ORF.

The snow load on the roof was four times above normal, owner Jьrgen von Steinkwich said.

The fear of collapsing roofs in several provinces mobilized thousands of firefighters, soldiers and volunteers who worked feverishly throughout the day to shovel snow.

In Upper Austria alone, 10,000 people were shoveling up to 2 meters (6.5 feet) of snow off hundreds of houses.

Two men in Altmuenster and Rosenau am Hengstpass suffered serious injuries after falling from rooftops.

The situation in six communities in Lower Austria was declared "catastrophic" after half a meter (1.6 feet) of fresh snow fell overnight, a spokesman for the province's firefighters told APA.

"This much snow hasn't fallen in the district for years," Joerg Wuerzelberger said.

The roof of a district warehouse collapsed overnight but there were no reports of injuries.

In the town of Bad Ischl in Upper Austria, an apartment building was evacuated overnight out of fear its roof would cave in. To facilitate the clearing efforts, only local residents were allowed to enter the town and a traffic ban was in effect, reports AP.

O.Ch.