Today in Austria: A roundup of the latest news on Wednesday
Elections coming up in Tyrol, new baby penguin at Vienna's zoo, refugee centres are full and more news from Austria on Wednesday.
Elections in Tyrol
All eyes will be in Tyrol this weekend, as the state heads to local elections: on Sunday, a new state parliament will be elected. This is the first elections since ÖVP's wonderkind Sebastian Kurz resigned as chancellor (and left politics altogether), so Austria is watching carefully to see how much of a hold on the state the ÖVP (Austria's People's Party) still has.
The centre-right party has dominated the state for almost 80 years, but might be heading to a big loss there. This, in turn, signified it's lower ratings federally in Austria. ÖVP is the party of Chancellor Karl Nehammer and is currently in a coalition with the Greens.
READ ALSO: Austria’s Nehammer formally elected party leader in unanimous vote
Vienna's Schönbrunn zoo shows new baby penguin
The king penguins of the Schönbrunn Zoo in the Austrian capital Vienna have hatched again this year, and a new chick was born at the end of July. Now, visitors can easily see the baby in the polarium, while it doesn't grow its water-repellent plumage.
King penguins are the second largest penguin species after emperor penguins and are about 95 centimetres, the zoo said. The females lay only one egg, which is carried by the parents alternately on their feet and incubated standing up in a special belly fold.
"Breeding king penguins in human care is still difficult and rare. We are therefore very pleased that these unique species have been successfully bred at Schönbrunn Zoo for the second time," says Zoo Director Stephan Hering-Hagenbeck.
READ ALSO: Austria bans ‘senseless’ killing of chicks with new animal welfare rules
Some 2.2 million Austrians never drive a car
An analysis by the Austrian Transport Club (VCÖ) showed that around 2.2 million Austrians never (1.6 million) or only rarely (600,000) travelled by car, Kurier reported.
"Those who make as many everyday journeys as possible by public transport, bicycle or on foot make an important contribution to climate protection, save energy and save themselves a lot of money," says VCÖ expert Michael Schwendinger.
READ ALSO: Does Austria have a street car racing problem?
Vienna's emergency accommodation for refugees is full
Long queues in front of the asylum centre in Traiskirchen (Lower Austria) and, in Vienna, 50 to 100 displaced persons from the Ukrainian war zone are still arriving every day Krone reported.
They are accommodated in emergency quarters, but these are largely full. Currently, about 25,000 people from the country invaded by Russia are living in Vienna. Otherwise, most of the refugees are Afghans, Syrians, Iraqis, Somalis and Russians.
Meanwhile, people are currently waiting nine months for an initial interview at MA 35, but the Viennese office for citizenship and immigration is "working on increasing capacities".
READ ALSO: Ukrainian refugees push Austria’s population past nine million
Weather
Screenshot from ZAMG
In the northern region from Salzburg eastwards, there may still be some precipitation. The snow line will retreat during the day to between 1500 and 1800m.
Otherwise, only isolated short rain showers are to be expected. Additionally, the sun will shine from time to time. In large parts of Carinthia, in southern Styria, as well as in Vorarlberg and Tyrol, there will be more sunshine all day.
The low temperatures will be between 0C and 9C, while maximum temperatures will reach 11C to 18C.
If you have any questions about life in Austria, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected].
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Elections in Tyrol
All eyes will be in Tyrol this weekend, as the state heads to local elections: on Sunday, a new state parliament will be elected. This is the first elections since ÖVP's wonderkind Sebastian Kurz resigned as chancellor (and left politics altogether), so Austria is watching carefully to see how much of a hold on the state the ÖVP (Austria's People's Party) still has.
The centre-right party has dominated the state for almost 80 years, but might be heading to a big loss there. This, in turn, signified it's lower ratings federally in Austria. ÖVP is the party of Chancellor Karl Nehammer and is currently in a coalition with the Greens.
READ ALSO: Austria’s Nehammer formally elected party leader in unanimous vote
Vienna's Schönbrunn zoo shows new baby penguin
The king penguins of the Schönbrunn Zoo in the Austrian capital Vienna have hatched again this year, and a new chick was born at the end of July. Now, visitors can easily see the baby in the polarium, while it doesn't grow its water-repellent plumage.
King penguins are the second largest penguin species after emperor penguins and are about 95 centimetres, the zoo said. The females lay only one egg, which is carried by the parents alternately on their feet and incubated standing up in a special belly fold.
"Breeding king penguins in human care is still difficult and rare. We are therefore very pleased that these unique species have been successfully bred at Schönbrunn Zoo for the second time," says Zoo Director Stephan Hering-Hagenbeck.
READ ALSO: Austria bans ‘senseless’ killing of chicks with new animal welfare rules
Some 2.2 million Austrians never drive a car
An analysis by the Austrian Transport Club (VCÖ) showed that around 2.2 million Austrians never (1.6 million) or only rarely (600,000) travelled by car, Kurier reported.
"Those who make as many everyday journeys as possible by public transport, bicycle or on foot make an important contribution to climate protection, save energy and save themselves a lot of money," says VCÖ expert Michael Schwendinger.
READ ALSO: Does Austria have a street car racing problem?
Vienna's emergency accommodation for refugees is full
Long queues in front of the asylum centre in Traiskirchen (Lower Austria) and, in Vienna, 50 to 100 displaced persons from the Ukrainian war zone are still arriving every day Krone reported.
They are accommodated in emergency quarters, but these are largely full. Currently, about 25,000 people from the country invaded by Russia are living in Vienna. Otherwise, most of the refugees are Afghans, Syrians, Iraqis, Somalis and Russians.
Meanwhile, people are currently waiting nine months for an initial interview at MA 35, but the Viennese office for citizenship and immigration is "working on increasing capacities".
READ ALSO: Ukrainian refugees push Austria’s population past nine million
Weather
In the northern region from Salzburg eastwards, there may still be some precipitation. The snow line will retreat during the day to between 1500 and 1800m.
Otherwise, only isolated short rain showers are to be expected. Additionally, the sun will shine from time to time. In large parts of Carinthia, in southern Styria, as well as in Vorarlberg and Tyrol, there will be more sunshine all day.
The low temperatures will be between 0C and 9C, while maximum temperatures will reach 11C to 18C.
If you have any questions about life in Austria, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected].
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