Bitesize News
The news stories here are written for radio and designed to be read in under a minute.
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Drought hits river transport
The drought could mean the suspension of a major communication route for Switzerland.
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Nurse shortage is a 'disaster'
Switzerland is suffering from a shortage of nurses. The head of the Swiss Nurses Association, Sophie Ley, says the situation is a disaster – and she warns it’s only going to get worse.
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Newly married couple killed on pass
More details have been released about the victims of the horror crash on the Bernina Pass at the beginning of the week.
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Major operation to open suspicious case
Police in Glarus launched a major operation after a briefcase was left abandoned on the street for several hours.
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Massive crowds expected in Zurich for Street Parade
A million people are expected to dance on the streets of Zurich tomorrow as the Street Parade is back – after a two-year Covid break.
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Army extends water deliveries to Alps
The army is extending its operation to deliver water to Alpine farms as the drought continues.
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First polls ahead of September votes published
The first polls ahead of a series of votes next month have been published – and it looks set the campaign to end intensive farming in Switzerland will pass – thanks to broad support in urban areas.
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Man fined after trapping fox
A man has been fined for animal cruelty after he set up a fox trap in his garden in Zurich which led to an animal having to be euthanized.
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Teens make daring waterfall crossing
A group of teenagers are being criticised after they took a daring climb across the Rhine Falls near Schaffhausen.
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Heatwave hits the elderly
The heatwave is having a major impact on the well being of the elderly. The Geneva University Hospital says there’s a clear rise in admissions in the geriatric department.
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Major accident on pass kills two
A major accident on the Bernina Pass has killed two people.
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Fuel demand strains French resources
The price difference in fuel between Switzerland and France is straining resources across the border.
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Heatwave means early grape harvest
Wine growers around the Geneva region are hopeful the weather will be good news for this year’s harvest.
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Glaciers give up the dead
The glaciers are giving up the dead. Over the last couple of weeks, two skeletons have been uncovered by retreating ice and a small plane that crashed in 1968 has emerged.
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Man found dead in lake Geneva
A man in his thirties was found dead on Sunday in the lake waters near Eaux-Vives in Geneva.
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High temperatures causing problems
The continuing warm weather is causing havoc for farmers and wildlife – as well as the continuing high risk of forest fires.
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The danger of falling tree branches
Geneva residents are being warned to watch out for falling tree branches.
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Geneva taxi drivers to disrupt start of school year
Geneva taxi drivers are threatening further action if Uber is allowed to continue operating in the canton.
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Chance of power cuts this winter
Stock upon candles and firewood this winter. That’s the advice from the chairmen of the Federal Energy Commission, Werner Luginbühl.
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Health premiums set to rise in 2023
There’ll be no relief from the cost-of-living crisis next year as a new report suggests health insurance premiums are set to rise in 2023.
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Geneva businesses confident
The latest figures from the Geneva Statistics Office suggests businesses in the canton believe the economy is doing generally well.
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Queues and delays at Gotthard Tunnel
Major queues formed at both ends of the Gotthard Tunnel yesterday afternoon.
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Gay community calls for monkeypox vaccines to be available in Switzerland
As the number of cases of monkeypox continues to rise around the world, the gay community in Switzerland is calling on the government to make a vaccine for the disease available here.
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Switzerland recognizes the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment
Switzerland, along with several other countries, has tabled a resolution at the United Nations General Assembly asking that the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment is recognized as a human right in its own right.
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Endangered mini crocodiles arrive in Lausanne
Two young Ganges gharials, an endangered species of mini crocodile, have settled into their new home at the Aquatis aquarium and vivarium in Lausanne as part of a conservation programme for the species.
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Federal report says 5G is not harmful to health
A study, carried out by the Federal Office of Energy, says that new 5G antennas have no negative impacts on health and that radiation from 5G is ‘moderate’, a conclusion that is seen as an important step in the rolling out of 5G in Switzerland.
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Body found in car that plunged into Lake Lucerne
A body has been recovered from a car that sank in Lake Lucerne in central Switzerland on Sunday. The car was recovered from the bottom of the lake yesterday.
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Swiss fireworks generate 300 tonnes of fine particle pollutants per year
With fireworks being banned or severely restricted in many cantons to mark Swiss National Day next week, it’s been announced that fireworks set off in Switzerland in a normal year produce 300 tonnes of fine particle pollutants.
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Four Swiss universities to join EU higher education scheme
Four Swiss universities have been given the green light to take part in the European Universities initiative aimed at strengthening the competitiveness of higher education in Europe.
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Too hot and dry for summer skiing in Zermatt
Ski lifts in Zermatt, usually open all year round, will no longer operate from tomorrow due to high temperatures and a lack of rain and snow.
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Geneva cybersecurity company hacked
Hackers have released more than 60,000 documents relating to the clients of a Geneva company that specialises in cybersecurity, with information from public institutions, banks and law firms being leaked on the darknet.
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Flight cancellations due to Lufthansa strike
Passengers travelling between Switzerland and Germany face cancellations today due to a strike by ground staff of the German airline Lufthansa.
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Climate change pushes Italian mountain refuge into Switzerland
It’s been revealed that the shifting of a glacier, which is melting due to global warming, has led to a mountain refuge that was originally on Italian soil now being two-thirds in Switzerland.
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Nursing home evacuated due to wildfire risk
Residents at a nursing home in the canton of Neuchatel are being relocated over fears that the home, on the edge of a forest, is at high risk from forest fires.
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Fireworks out and drones in to celebrate Swiss National Day
Acrobatic drones and light displays will replace the traditional fireworks to mark Swiss National Day next Monday, August the 1st.
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Geneva firefighters help tackle gigantic forest fire in France
Valuable experience has been learned after 12 firefighters from the fire and rescue service in Geneva helped their colleagues in southwestern France to fight a gigantic forest fire.
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Backtrack over filling swimming pools during water restrictions following public outcry
A decision to allow swimming pools to be topped up but watering gardens to be banned has been clarified after public outcry in neighbouring France.
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Swiss scammed by Next-Gen to be partially reimbursed
It’s been announced that nearly 1,300 people in Switzerland who were scammed by the American company Next-Gen will receive some compensation.
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Body found in lake four days after man disappears
The body of a 48-year-old man, who disappeared in Lake Neuchâtel last Tuesday, has been found by a water sports enthusiast in Hauterive, four days after he went missing.
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Outcry in neighbouring France over ban on watering vegetable plots but not on filling swimming pools
As restrictions on water continue, a decision to allow residents of Haute-Savoie in neighbouring France to top up their swimming pools and for golf courses and sports fields to be watered but not vegetable plots has been met with anger from councillors and residents alike.
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Switzerland’s largest ever scout camp gets underway
Around 30'000 young scouts from all over Switzerland have set up camp in the vallée de Conches in the canton of Valais, the largest ever scout camp in the country.
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Paleo 2022 comes to a close
Paleo Festival 2022 has come to a close last night with performances from Lil Simz and Stromae. Artists earlier in the week included Kiss, DJ Snake, Sting and Rag n Bone man.