Winds above 150 km/h hit Switzerland last night as winter storm “Egon” swept across the country, according to Vincent Devantay of MeteoNews. The strongest winds were recorded at Säntis (154 km/h), Pilatus (147 km/h), Chasseral (144 km/h), Saint-Chrischona (139 km/h) and La Dôle (132 km/h). These are all relatively high mountain peaks with the exception […]
Winter storm expected tonight followed by snow tomorrow
20 Minutes. Despite warmer temperatures today, the winter chill is far from over. According to Klaus Marquardt of Meteonews, a cold front called “Egon” is heading for Switzerland and will hit on Thursday night and Friday. “We should expect snow, lightening, thunder and falling temperatures” he told 20 Minutes. Swiss Meteo, has warned there will […]
Living close to a major road increases risk of dementia
A recent study published in the Lancet finds a link between living close to a major road and dementia. The study looked at 2.2 million residents aged 55-85 years in Ontario in Canada. Initially, all of these people were free of neurological diseases. Between 2001 and 2012, 243,611 cases of dementia were identified among the group. A […]
Swiss fact: Swiss eat half as much meat as Americans
In 2015, an average American consumed 95.4 kg of beef, mutton, pork and poultry. An average resident of Switzerland ate 47.1 kg, slightly less than half the amount. The biggest difference was the amount of poultry consumed. An average American ate 47.6 kg compared to 10.5 kg in Switzerland. There was also a big difference […]
Temperatures plummet in Switzerland, but some of the coldest places are not where you’d expect
If you woke up in Switzerland on Friday morning to find temperatures of -10 C, then you are living somewhere relatively warm. Only one of the places in Meteo Centrale’s top 20 coldest sits at more than 2,000 metres above sea level. The Julierpass at 2,284 m, with a low of -20.5 C, was the highest but only the 12th […]
Forest fires in Ticino and Graubunden now under control
20 Minutes. Only one army helicopter is now covering Val Mesolcina in the canton of Graubunden, now that forest fires there have been brought under control, according to 20 Minutes. A no fly zone imposed on the region has also been lifted. At the same time the Swiss air force says it is ready to spring […]
Snow finally falls after driest December since 1864
In 2016, the Swiss plateau experienced its driest December since records began in 1864, according to Swiss Meteo. Across the area between Lake Geneva in the west and Lake Constance in the East, an average of only 2mm of precipitation was recorded. Across half of the plateau, not a single drop of moisture fell. From 1981 […]
50 percent of Swiss sleep with their pets, estimates vet
20 Minutes. Is it OK to sleep with your cat or dog? There appears to be no evidence that the practice presents any dangers to human health. According to vet Gabrielle Brunner, from Basel, the phenomenon is widespread in Switzerland. “I estimate that half of Swiss do it” she told 20 Minutes. From a sanitary perspective […]
Unseasonal high-pressure system keeping snow away from Switzerland
According to Swiss Meteo, an unseasonal high pressure system is currently passing over Switzerland. Not good news for those hoping for snow, the system is likely to affect the weather between now and 1 January 2017. The last three winters have brought strong anticyclones during Christmas. While this weather pattern is unusual compared to the […]
Swiss fact: Switzerland sends no urban waste to landfill
According to the Swiss Federal office for the environment, no Swiss urban waste ends up in landfill. Around 50% is recycled and the rest is used to produce energy. In 2013, Switzerland produced 5.7 tonnes of urban waste, around 700kgs per person. Half of this was recycled, while the other half was incinerated to produce […]
