diff --git a/scripts/install_birdnet.sh b/scripts/install_birdnet.sh
index 107c606..a06ab57 100755
--- a/scripts/install_birdnet.sh
+++ b/scripts/install_birdnet.sh
@@ -40,6 +40,10 @@ install_birdnet
 
 cd $my_dir/scripts || exit 1
 
+# tzlocal.get_localzone() will fail if the Debian specific /etc/timezone is not in sync
+CURRENT_TIMEZONE=$(timedatectl show --value --property=Timezone)
+[ -f /etc/timezone ] && echo "$CURRENT_TIMEZONE" | sudo tee /etc/timezone > /dev/null
+
 ./install_language_label_nm.sh -l $DATABASE_LANG || exit 1
 
 exit 0