All Icelandair flights today, both domestic and international, have been canceled due to severe weather conditions. The airline aims to resume normal operations tomorrow but is closely monitoring weather forecasts in the coming days.
Travelers passing through Hvalnes ran into serious trouble yesterday as strong winds caused intense sandstorms, shattering windows in numerous vehicles. Members of the Hornafjörður rescue team and police responded to assist those affected.
Yesterday marked five years since volcanic activity resumed on the Reykjanes Peninsula. On March 19, 2021, an eruption began in Geldingadalir near Fagradalsfjall, marking the start of a new volcanic era on the peninsula after nearly 800 years of dormancy.
Eyjagöng ehf. has reached an important milestone in assessing the feasibility of establishing a permanent road connection between mainland Iceland and the Westman Islands.
A large avalanche fell from Kirkjubólshlíð during the night, crossing the road and continuing down into the sea.
Rising inflation in Iceland is largely a domestic problem, driven in part by excessive increases in public charges and wage hikes beyond collective agreements, according to Lilja Dögg Alfreðsdóttir, chair of the Progressive Party.
“It is clear that the economy is in trouble when the Monetary Policy Committee raises interest rates due to rising inflation at the same time as economic activity is slowing,” said Anna Hrefna Ingimundardóttir, assistant director and head of economics at the Confederation of Icelandic Enterprise, in an interview with mbl.is regarding the Central Bank of Iceland’s 0.25 percentage point rate hike this morning.
Several roads in the Westfjords and North Iceland are either closed or under uncertainty due to avalanche danger, according to the Icelandic Road Administration’s website, umferdin.is.
The Monetary Policy Committee of the Central Bank of Iceland has decided to raise the bank’s key interest rate by 0.25 percentage points.
The Confederation of Icelandic Enterprise is warning that a proposed bill on spatial property units and the removal of energy infrastructure exemptions from property valuation could lead to significantly higher taxes on energy facilities, potentially harming competitiveness and reducing investment in energy production.
“The Icelandic Meteorological Office’s avalanche monitoring team is focused on this area and developments are currently being closely observed,” said Hlynur Hafberg Snorrason, chief superintendent with the Westfjords police, in an interview with mbl.is regarding an avalanche that fell in Seljalandshlíð this morning. As a precaution, a commercial building in Ísafjörður, where dozens of people work, was evacuated.
“Seven individuals have been arrested, suspected of a serious assault on two people who were injured, one of whom was taken to hospital,” said Unnar Már Ástþórsson, chief superintendent with the Capital Area Police, in an interview with mbl.is regarding a major assault in the 105 district of Reykjavík last night.
Snædís Xyza Mae Jónsdóttir placed 10th in the Bocuse d’Or Europe competition, which took place in Marseille today, thereby securing a place in the Bocuse d’Or world finals, to be held in Lyon, France, next year.
Laufey held her second and final concert of the weekend last night at Kórinn in Kópavogur, bringing to a close a concert tour in which she, among other highlights, filled Madison Square Garden in New York and the O2 Arena in London twice.
“The situation is now improving. It appears that Holtavörðuheiði and the road to Blönduós have been reopened, and people have begun leaving the emergency shelters,” said Pétur Björnsson, chief superintendent with the police in Northwest Iceland, in an interview with mbl.is.
The Icelandic Road and Coastal Administration has closed Siglufjarðarvegur and the road around Ólafsfjarðarmúli due to avalanche danger.
A meeting on emergency oil reserves in Iceland was held this week at the Environment and Energy Agency. The contents of the meeting remain confidential, but the discussions have been in preparation for some time.
Bogi Nils Bogason, CEO of Icelandair, believes there is reason to review the Icelandic labor market model, saying such a review could be key to achieving greater stability in society.
Rescue teams have reached the cross-country skiers who were on Hofsjökull glacier and requested assistance this morning. They sent out a distress call earlier today, saying they had become wet and cold but were staying put. Rescue teams set out this morning to bring them to safety.
The weather was calm and pleasant when Davíð Oddsson, former prime minister, mayor of Reykjavík, governor of the Central Bank of Iceland, and editor of Morgunblaðið, was laid to rest from Hallgrímskirkja today.
Flags have been flown at half-mast at ministry buildings in Reykjavík today in connection with the funeral of Davíð Oddsson, former prime minister, mayor of Reykjavík, governor of the Central Bank of Iceland, and editor of Morgunblaðið.
Rescue teams from both the north and south sides of Holtavörðuheiði headed to the mountain pass this morning to free vehicles that became stuck there after last night’s severe weather and overnight storm.
Davíð Oddsson, editor of Morgunblaðið and former mayor of Reykjavík, prime minister, and governor of the Central Bank of Iceland, who passed away on March 1, will be laid to rest today.
The case known in Iceland as the terrorism case was referred back to the Court of Appeal yesterday after the court's previous ruling was invalidated.
An earthquake measuring 3.7 occurred just before 12:00 today in Torfajökull glacier, about three kilometers west of Landmannalaugar.
Avalanche risk has increased on Flateyri Road, and the road is expected to be closed later in the day.
The Supreme Court of Iceland has sentenced Samúel Jói Björgvinsson to three and a half years in prison, and the twin brothers Elías and Jónas Shamsudin to three years in prison for serious drug offenses.
The road through Súðavíkurhlíð is impassable after an avalanche fell onto the road around 10 a.m. this morning, and a danger level has now been declared.
Foreign Minister Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir will attend a meeting of the Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee today.
An enormous halibut was landed from the Greenlandic trawler Ilivileq at Reykjavík harbor this morning, and it was no small catch, 172 kilograms and 2.5 meters long.
Foreign Minister Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir says that if Iceland resumes accession negotiations with the European Union, they could be completed within about a year and a half.
A heated exchange took place in Parliament today when Dagur B. Eggertsson, MP for the Social Democratic Alliance, asked Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson, chairman of the Centre Party, to explain his party’s alleged ties to Donald Trump’s MAGA movement.
The Reykjanes District Court has sentenced a man in his fifties to six months in prison for importing nearly 400 grams of cocaine into the country.
Foreign Minister Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir presented a parliamentary resolution at Althingi yesterday proposing a national referendum on whether Iceland should resume accession negotiations with the European Union (EU).
“The seismic activity does not appear to be increasing, and nothing is happening that suggests an eruption is getting closer,” says Benedikt Gunnar Ófeigsson, head of deformation measurements at the Icelandic Meteorological Office, when asked whether a tenth eruption could be expected on the Sundhnúkagígar crater row since the eruption sequence there began in December 2023.
