€4.6m Damages Reported Following Early June Flooding

Companies have reported €4.6 million worth of damages following the severe flooding that took place at the beginning of the month.

Following the bad weather at the beginning of June 2018, nearly 30 companies that have suffered damage have so far contacted the Ministry of the Economy to apply for any aid measures available. The companies include hotels, restaurants and campsites, along with other craft or service businesses.

About two-thirds of the reporting companies have already been able to provide a provisional record of the damage they are currently suffering to a total of €4.6 million. Of the companies affected, three reported damage exceeding €1 million each following the floods. It should be noted that this is an interim balance sheet which reflects the first estimates as to the extent of the damage suffered.

On the basis of the quotations provided and depending on the share of the costs covered by the insurance, the Ministry of the Economy may then pay a first financial aid to cover up to a maximum of €200,000 of the estimated costs. A first aid for a total amount of €558,000 has already been provided to six of the companies concerned. The actual damages will subsequently be borne in full on presentation of the related invoices thanks to the provisions of the aid intended to remedy the damage caused by certain natural disasters.

In the Mullerthal - Luxembourg's Little Switzerland region, about a third of the hiking trails had to be closed to the public immediately following the bad weather of 1 June 2018. Thanks to the work undertaken by the teams of CNDS-Services de l'Entraide and by the Nature and Forest Administration, more than half of these trails have already been reopened as of 19 June and are now available to the public. For trails that remain inaccessible, including some of the Mullerthal Trail, signs have been put in place to inform hikers on-site of the paths to be used to bypass the closed areas.