Vienna teenagers face court for 500,000 euro school flooding

Two 16-year-old boys appeared before the Vienna Regional Court to face charges of severe property damage following a massive flooding incident at the Albertus-Magnus-Gymnasium in Vienna-Döbling. In February, the teenagers allegedly clogged sinks in restrooms across multiple floors with toilet paper and left the faucets running, causing damage estimated at over 500,000 euros.

The flooding affected hallways, restrooms, and seeped through ceilings into lower floors, even threatening the building's electrical wiring and causing several days of class cancellations. The school expressed deep distress over the destructive event.

One of the defendants accepted a diversion offer, which would result in the dismissal of his case provided he completes 60 hours of community service and pays a symbolic 500 euros to the victims within six months. He expressed remorse, stating he wanted to ‘play the hero’ and did not anticipate the scale of the damage. The second defendant pleaded not guilty and denied involvement. His trial has been postponed until October 8 due to the absence of a key witness.