Snow chaos paralyzes Austria

Heavy snowfall led to extensive traffic disruptions in large parts of Austria on Saturday. Deep winter driving conditions caused issues in the far west—Vorarlberg and Tyrol—and Upper and Lower Austria. In Tyrol, there were also disruptions to rail services and the power supply. In a nightclub in the Vorarlberg town of Dornbirn, 91 people were trapped for five hours after a landslide. The ÖAMTC reported deep winter road conditions, especially on the northern and eastern sides of the Alps. With repeated traffic jams and accidents, numerous main routes were difficult…

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Viennese spend 50 euros on gifts for St. Nicholas this year

The Viennese are spending an average of 50 euros on gifts for St. Nicholas this year, a survey shows. Chocolate Nikolaus, fruit, and cash are especially popular gifts. Many chocolate Santa Clauses are once again being sold over the counters of confectionery manufacturers in Vienna these days – but of course, there is also the occasional Krampus. Survey shows that Viennese like to give presents for St. NicholasAccording to a recent KMU Forschung Austria poll, seven out of ten Viennese want to give at least one small gift to St.…

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Austria is on the brink of a snowy winter

Wintry conditions are forecast for large parts of Austria starting today. The reason for this is a low-pressure system over northern Italy, which will bring large amounts of snow to Austria at the beginning of the weekend, as the ORF weather desk reported. The largest amounts of snow are expected from Vorarlberg to the Vienna Woods over the weekend. In some areas, up to half a meter of snow may be added; in the mountains, it may even be significantly more. Problems with road and rail traffic are to be…

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High numbers: this is where Corona is currently raging the strongest

In addition to coronavirus, influenza and RSV virus infections are rising in some federal states. We have an overview. Austria is overwhelmed by an extreme coronavirus wave, and the number of infections continues to rise sharply. As virologist Monika Redlberger-Fritz explains in “Heute,” Austria is experiencing a “massive corona wave.” However, it is impossible to say when the peak will be reached.The corona wave is currently strongest in Vienna, Carinthia, and Vorarlberg, as wastewater test data shows. The rising COVID cases have prompted the Vienna Health Association (Wigev) to introduce…

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A new scam: fake parking tickets on parked cars

A new scam is circulating: Offenders leave fake parking tickets on parked vehicles, regardless of whether they are properly parked. These are marked with the letterhead of the Vienna Provincial Police Directorate and the police logo. The victims are asked to pay a fee because the “police” claim that an offence was committed due to improper parking. By scanning the QR code on the fake parking ticket, the victims are taken to a payment page where they have to enter their bank details. The mass phenomenon is a scam.The police…

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City of Vienna increases nursing salaries in two shortage areas

Vienna is increasing the salaries of hospital nurses in two areas where there are shortages, namely trauma surgery and neurosurgery. This was announced by City Councillor for Health Peter Hacker (SPÖ) on Wednesday on the ORF program “Wien heute”. According to the city, there is a shortage of nursing staff in both specialities. In response to an APA enquiry, he added that there is now the possibility of overpayment in order to incentivize nursing staff to switch to these areas. Qualified nursing staff receive almost 680 euros more per monthQualified…

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Urgent warning about cost trap with new vignette

The new vignettes for 2024 will become effective on December 1, 2023. However, there is a trap you could fall into in addition to innovations. On December 1, 2023, the new vignette year begins; this also marks the start of validity for the new adhesive vignette in sunny yellow and the digital vignette in 2024. In addition to the colour of the vignette, there are a few new additions this year. “The 1-day vignette is new for the first time. Like the 10-day vignette, it is now valid immediately after…

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Back to the mask? The Health Minister makes a recommendation

In view of the rising incidence of coronavirus and influenza, Health Minister Johannes Rauch on Wednesday advised people to wear masks again in places where many elderly or sick people come together – for example in hospitals, nursing homes or doctors’ surgeries. This also applies when people are crowded together, for example in crowded pubs. There is no specific mask requirement. This is because hospitals are not overloaded. In the middle of corona waves“We are in the middle of a coronavirus wave. The national wastewater monitoring clearly shows this,” said…

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The weekend brings rain and snowfall for the whole of Austria

Drivers should prepare for wintry road conditions and adapt their driving accordingly. Skiing enthusiasts, on the other hand, should be delighted at the prospect of fresh powder snow, which will create ideal conditions for winter sports activities. The forecast for Friday already brings us the cold snap: the Eastern Alps will be under the influence of an Italian low and its band of clouds on Friday. Overall, dense clouds will predominate in all parts of the country. There will also be widespread and persistent rain or snow, although most of…

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