Storm front triggers nearly a dozen water rescues in Salzburg

A storm front prompted nearly a dozen operations by Salzburg water rescuers on Friday afternoon at lakes in the Flachgau region and neighbouring Mondsee in Upper Austria, ORF reported. Several water sports enthusiasts had to be brought to safety as the storm approached.

The first call came at 3:27 p.m. from Lake Fuschl, where rescuers were asked to search for a missing stand-up paddleboarder. The person reappeared shortly afterwards, before the emergency crews arrived.

Not long afterwards, the Fuschl fire brigade used a boat to rescue two other stand-up paddleboarders from the lake. At the same time, rescuers responded to five incidents at Lake Wolfgang. Two stand-up paddleboarders had been caught by the wind and were in distress, while a rowing boat had to be towed away from the Falkensteinwand area.

Rescuers in St. Wolfgang were also briefly called to search for a missing kitesurfer and a swimmer. Police, firefighters, the Red Cross, an emergency helicopter and water rescuers found both people unharmed after a short search.

At Mondsee, several electric boats, stand-up paddleboards and sailing boats in distress also had to be towed. All operations were completed successfully. The storm warning systems were active for 30 minutes.