Russian Embassy apologises over noise from faulty roof fans

Russia’s embassy in Vienna has accepted responsibility for disruptive noise caused by two faulty roof fans and apologised for the inconvenience, ORF reported.

The embassy said the noise had stopped over the weekend, according to a spokesperson for Austria’s Foreign Ministry. A Russian representative also said the embassy would formally respond to a notice from the City of Vienna once it had been delivered.

The Foreign Ministry had demanded that the noise be stopped quickly during a meeting with the Russian representative on Tuesday. The meeting followed information from Vienna’s building police, MA 37, about noise coming from the embassy’s two defective roof fans.

Reports of a sound measuring around 790 hertz in front of the embassy on Reisnerstrasse began on September 8. Vienna’s environmental department, MA 22, carried out a noise measurement that day on behalf of the building police. An expert found a clear exceedance of the permitted baseline noise level, particularly at night.

Two days later, Vienna’s public health service, MA 15, said the noise levels could pose a health risk. The embassy team had previously said it could not hear the noise, even after it was classified as a health hazard the previous week.

The property management of a neighbouring building first reported the noise to the building police in early May 2026. It repeatedly followed up, later emailed the Russian embassy and contacted other Austrian authorities. In an email to Vienna’s environmental department dated August 20, the property management said further action appeared difficult because of the Russian embassy’s special status.