Flooding locks in residents in Skagafjörður: Worst in 60 years
There is still a considerable amount of water in the Héraðsvötn River. Photo/Þorgrímur Ómar Tavsen
Residents of the farms Syðri- and Ytri-Húsabakki remain stranded after flooding from Héraðsvötn and Húseyjarkvísl rivers rendered the road to the farms impassable last night.
Severe flooding across North Iceland prompted a warning from the National Police Commissioner’s Civil Protection Department, citing dangerously high water levels in both the Austari-Jökulsá and Héraðsvötn rivers.
“I was on my way home around half past nine last night, and the road was just starting to get worse. It kept rising—I don’t think the peak hit until around four in the morning,” said Þorgrímur Ómar Tavsen of Ytri-Húsabakki in an interview with mbl.is. The road soon became completely submerged.
Hope for Access Tomorrow
Although the water level has begun to drop, Tavsen remains uncertain about when the road will reopen.
“It’s dipped a little. I put a stake in my bank this morning and by noon the water had gone down about a foot,” he said.
When asked if he expects to be able to leave soon, he replied, “This will take time—there’s so much water. Maybe by lunchtime tomorrow we can check whether the road is still there.”
Unprecedented Flooding
Tavsen and his wife have lived at the farm since 2019, but local accounts indicate that such flooding hasn’t been seen in 60 years.
“It’s even worse at Syðri-Húsabakki,” he noted. “There, not only the road is flooded, but the barn as well.”
Making the Most of Isolation
Despite being stranded, Tavsen is calm and making productive use of his time.
“There’s so much peace and quiet here—it’s wonderful,” he said. He’s been using the time to work on a small boat museum in his barn, which he plans to open to visitors in June.
He even posted a video of the floodwaters surrounding the farm to the museum’s Facebook page this morning.
