Austria

Stories 61 - 80 | << Prev   Next >>

Man, 65, Saves Busload of Tourists From Tragedy

Police laud passenger's quick reflexes after driver collapses in Austrian Alps

(Newser) - A French tourist is being praised for saving a busload of fellow passengers from "catastrophe" after the driver passed out. The bus was on a winding road in the Austrian Alps near Schwaz when the 76-year-old driver collapsed, the BBC reports. As the bus was careening toward a precipice,...

5 Climbers Fall to Deaths After Rope Comes Loose

Another 3 climbers died on Italian glacier

(Newser) - Sunday was a deadly day in the Austrian Alps: Five roped-together German climbers fell to their deaths after a rope apparently came loose, the BBC reports. Police say one of the climbers slipped and pulled down the rest of the group of six men, who plunged more than 600 feet...

A 'Second-Long Sleep,' Then Thousands of Loose Chickens

It happened on an Austrian highway

(Newser) - Some 7,000 chickens on their way to be slaughtered had an unexpected shot at freedom Tuesday when the truck transporting them crashed into a bridge in Austria, spilling its load on the highway. Traffic on the A1 autobahn into Vienna was snarled for hours as authorities cleared the scene...

Court Rules on Seizure of Hitler's Childhood Home

It was legal, court says; the owner is expected to appeal

(Newser) - Austria's highest court on Friday ruled the government was within its rights to seize the house where Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler was born in 1889 after its owner refused to sell it, saying the move was needed to give the state full control over plans to reduce its attraction...

This Man Will Be One of Central Europe's Last Hermits

Congrats?

(Newser) - "When I read about the Saalfelden hermitage, I thought to myself: that's the place for me," says Stan Vanuytrecht. The mayor of the Austrian town, perched in the Alps, thought it was just the spot for Vanuytrecht, too. Vanuytrecht, a bearded, pipe-smoking Catholic deacon from Belgium, beat...

Authorities Investigating Hitler Sightings in His Hometown

The impersonator has been spotted at a bookstore and bar

(Newser) - It appears Hitler has made an improbable return to the place of his birth. Reuters reports the former Nazi dictator has been spotted around Braunau am Inn in Austria reading magazines about WWII in a bookstore, giving the name "Harald Hitler" at a bar, and standing outside the home...

Austria Cracks Down on Full-Face Veils

Refugees, some immigrants may also be made to sign 'integration contracts'

(Newser) - Face-covering veils are set to be banned in public places in Austria, per the country's ruling coalition, with a more widespread ban of all headscarves and religious symbols worn by state employees possible down the road, the BBC reports. The ban on niqabs (veils that cover all of the...

Hitler House Not Being Torn Down After All

Home in Braunau am Inn, Austria, will be used by charity for the disabled

(Newser) - Austrian government officials have decided to transform the home where Adolf Hitler was born into a base for a charity, not tear down the property as some had demanded. Thursday's decision comes a day after lawmakers overwhelmingly approved an Interior Ministry bill to dispossess the owner, who had refused...

Austria's Word of the Year Has 51 Letters

And it was born of a messy presidential election

(Newser) - For all those who don't speak German—and indeed for those who do—here is Austria's word of the year, adding to the challenges of reading and speaking the language. It's "Bundespraesidentenstichwahlwiederholungsverschiebung," or "postponement of the repeat of the runoff of the presidential election....

Austria's Infamous Incest House Just Sold

Josef Fritzl's house bought by strip club owner looking to turn it into apartments

(Newser) - The home where "Austrian incest monster" Josef Fritzl kept his daughter locked in the cellar for 24 years while fathering seven children by her may soon be used to house strippers, the Local reports. Fritzl was found guilty of murder, incest, sequestration, and 3,000 counts of rape in...

Far-Right Presidential Hopeful Defeated in Austria

'What happens here today has relevance for all of Europe'

(Newser) - Left-leaning Alexander Van der Bellen triumphed over his right-wing rival Sunday in the vote for Austria's presidency, a victory welcomed by moderate politicians across Europe as a blow against the populist forces looking to weaken the European Union. While the Austrian presidency is a mostly symbolic post, it had...

Austria to Tear Down House Where Hitler Was Born

Feared the house becoming a rallying point for neo-Nazis

(Newser) - After a long national debate, Austria has agreed—in principle—to demolish the house where Adolf Hitler was born, the BBC reports. The infamous German dictator was born on April 20, 1889, in a rented room on the top floor of a guesthouse in the town of Braunau am Inn,...

Austria Eyes 'Cleanest Solution' for Hitler Birthplace

Country's interior minister says demolishing house would probably be best

(Newser) - Austria's interior minister says he can imagine having the house where Adolf Hitler was born demolished, calling it "the cleanest solution" for the building that nobody wants , reports the AP . The Austrian government wants to expropriate the house in Braunau am Inn on the German border where the...

10 Most Peaceful Countries on Earth

Iceland, Denmark, Austria are on top

(Newser) - Congratulations, America: You sit 103rd on a list that ranks countries by their peacefulness, in a report compiled by the Institute for Economics and Peace . The ranking is based on 23 factors including involvement in conflicts at home and abroad, crime, terrorist activity, political stability, levels of militarization, and relations...

Austria's Crazy Close Election Sign of Split Europe

Far-right candidate loses by less than 1%

(Newser) - Left-leaning candidate Alexander Van der Bellen won the election to become Austrian president Monday, but his right-wing rival was only narrowly behind—a result that reflects the growing strength of Europe's anti-EU political movements. Right-winger Norbert Hofer had been narrowly ahead of Van der Bellen, a Greens politician running...

Austria Wants to Seize Hitler's Birth Home

The vacant building, sometimes a Neo-Nazi hot spot, is proving quite a headache

(Newser) - In an effort to prevent the "increasingly decrepit" building from falling into further disrepair, Austrian officials say they plan to draft a law that would allow them to seize Adolf Hitler's birth home in Braunau, a quaint town of 17,000 on the German border, reports the New ...

Ticket for Burping Spawns 'Loud Belch Flashmob'

Vienna man fined for 'violating public decency'

(Newser) - Vienna visitors beware: Burping too loud could come at a price. Edin Mehic, a bartender in the Austrian capital, found that out when fined the equivalent of $77 after belching in the proximity of a policeman while enjoying the scene at the Prater amusement park. The ticket notes that Mehic...

'Massive' Avalanche Kills 5 Skiers in Austrian Alps

Two others were injured

(Newser) - Police in Austria say five people were killed Saturday when a "massive" avalanche in the Austrian Alps struck skiers from the Czech Republic taking part in a freeriding camp, the AP reports. Two other skiers were injured and 10 were rescued unharmed, Tirol police spokesperson Helmut Schuetz said. He...

Reports Conflict on US Nanny's Cause of Death

The 25-year-old has been identified as Lauren Mann

(Newser) - Officials have released a name in the case of the American nanny found dead in her Vienna, Austria, apartment on Tuesday night, but beyond that, much remains unclear. ABC News reports Lauren Mann, 25, died by suffocation, though it notes that Vienna police rep Thomas Keiblinger earlier referenced a preliminary...

American Nanny Found Dead in Vienna

Case is being treated as homicide

(Newser) - Austrian authorities are investigating the death of an American woman found Tuesday in her apartment in Vienna. The 25-year-old from Colorado, whose name has not been released, was working as a nanny while studying in the country, reports NBC News . The Local adds she had been there for about three...

Stories 61 - 80 | << Prev   Next >>
Most Read on Newser