2005 European floods river, road and railway, and the river expanded to fill the entire gorge. This stranded thousands of tourists in the village, and the only way out was by helicopter or by crossing one of the high Alpine passes. The Tyrol and Vorarlberg states of Austria saw many areas cut off by flooded roads. The lower part of the Rhine overflowed, affecting the Swiss Graubünden Canton, as well as parts of Vorarlberg. The river Danube and its tributaries overflowed in many places, flooding parts of Germany, Bavaria in particular. Several floodings and landslides were reported in Lower Austria and Styria. The
Vorarlberg Rhine Valley areas of Bregenz and Dornbirn, live about 180,000 people, around half the population of Vorarlberg. The "green lung" of this region is the Vorarlberg Ried, which is on the border with Switzerland and is surrounded by the settlements of Vorarlberg on three sides. Geographically the Lower Rhine Valley also includes the municipality of Altach. Due to its historical links with the municipality of Götzis and membership of the district of Feldkirch, Altach is often considered part of the Oberland. Vorarlberg Rhine Valley The Vorarlberg Rhine Valley (), also called the Vorarlberg Oberland and Unterland, is a section of the Alpine