After a long dry spell, skies opened in parts of Switzerland on 17 August 2022, reported RTS. 24-hour rainfall reached as high as 90 mm in parts of Ticino, in Switzerland’s Italian-speaking region. On Wednesday and Thursday evenings, thunderstorms brought heavy rain, wind and hail to certain parts of Switzerland, reported SRF. Hardest hit were […]
Abandoned animal numbers rising in French-speaking Switzerland
After a two-year lull the number of abandoned animals is on the rise, according to animal protection organisations in French-speaking Switzerland, reported RTS. Animal adoptions rose during the Covid-19 pandemic. But as people have transitioned back to normal life the number of abandoned animals has risen and the number in refuges is rising again, particularly […]
Swiss dam dumping water during drought and energy shortage
A dam in Switzerland is releasing huge quantities of water despite widespread drought conditions and hose bans across Switzerland, reported Blick. The Gibidum reservoir and dam in the canton of Valais has a problem that much of the rest of the country would like to have: too much water. The dam that contains the lake’s […]
Hydro electricity industry accused of record fish deaths in Switzerland
High temperatures, a lack of precipitation and competition for water from hydroelectricity is killing record numbers of fish is Switzerland, reported RTS. According to the Swiss Fishing Federation (SFF), we are currently witnessing fish mortality at a historic level with some species facing the threat of extinction. Across the Swiss plateau and the southern side […]
Portable electric heaters may face ban in Switzerland
After a steep rise in gas and heating oil prices, portable electric heaters have been flying of the shelves in Switzerland. However, with a squeeze on electricity production there are fears these extra heaters might destabilise the power grid, reported the newspaper Tagesanzeiger. Portable electric heater sales are up 300% compared to last year, according […]
July 2022 Switzerland’s sunniest month on record
July 2022 broke a Swiss record. Never before has such a sunny month been recorded in Switzerland. Geneva was Switzerland’s sunniest city. There the sun shone for 373 hours, a Swiss record. The previous Swiss record dates back to July 1911, when the sun shone in Bern for 370 hours, reported the weather service Meteo […]
Moving glacier leaves Italian building in Switzerland
Two thirds of an Italian building on the Alpine border between Italy and Switzerland is now in Switzerland, reported Le Matin. The incident has triggered three years of intensive transnational negotiations with no breakthrough. The Rifugio Guide del Cervino (pictured above) sits at 3,480 metres above sea level on the border of the ski domains […]
Switzerland breaks river temperature records
During July 2022, measurements taken at 11 points on a number Swiss rivers have broken temperature records, reported RTS. The water in the Aar river, which flows through Bern, reached 24 degrees at the point where it reaches the city, the highest recorded level since the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) began measuring river […]
Heat wave returns to Switzerland on Monday
Despite a few clouds, cooler temperatures and rain in some corners of Switzerland on Friday 29 July 2022, temperatures are set to climb back above to 30 degrees or above across much of Switzerland from Monday, according to Meteo Swiss. On Saturday and Sunday, temperatures in nearly all of Switzerland’s main cities will remain below […]
Swiss army helicopters water to drought stricken animals
On 26 July 2022, Switzerland’s military helicoptered water to alpine farms in the municipality of Kerns in the canton of Obwalden, reported RTS. Obwalden is the first canton to request emergency water during the current persistent dry period in Switzerland. The operation was aimed at ensuring the survival of livestock, which could not be easily […]
