Reporting from the villages of East Iceland and on everything that concerns the region. Updated daily.
A brand-new, state-of-the-art Komatsu excavator has recently drawn considerable attention in Seyðisfjörður. Not so much the excavator itself, perhaps, as its highly unusual colours. It is no coincidence that the machine was delivered on Pink Day itself, 21 October, on which day, and indeed throughout the month, everyone in the country is especially encouraged to wear pink in order to…
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Four boys and all the girls attended a cooking course at Eskifjarðarskóli in the autumn of 1953. Þorsteinn Skúlason won a prize for his recipe book, and the trophy still adorns his dining table.
The Icelandic Meteorological Office has issued a yellow warning for increased risk of landslides and rockfall in Austfirðir, East Iceland as far as Glettingur, and on Tröllaskagi. The warning is in effect until noon tomorrow.
On 6 February 2024 a storm swept across the Eastfjords, and the farmers at Vattarnes were hit especially hard. In one small spot the wind intensified and caused major damage to a residential house and sheep sheds. The roof of the outbuildings was blown off in one piece and then shattered in another …
Winds will pick up around 7 pm this evening from the northwest in the Eastfjords, and gusts could reach up to 35 m/s in wind streams near mountains, for example in Hamarfjörður.
Staff at the Housing and Construction Authority (HMS) have for some time been working to estimate the property boundaries of farms across the country where no surveyed delineation exists. The authority has now published draft boundaries for a total of 1,160 farms in Northeast and East Iceland.
Two new staff members have been hired at the Tjarnarskógur preschool in Egilsstaðir, where a severe staff shortage at the start of the school year greatly limited how many children could be admitted. Everything now looks to be improving, although the preschool still needs to advertise for staff.
The mayor of Múlaþing says the addition to Loftbrú, announced yesterday by the infrastructure minister, is not what people are calling for. Not everyone can live in Reykjavík, and rural residents’ access to services must be made more equal.
We who live in East Iceland help fund the nation’s shared services just like everyone else. A large share of those services and that activity is in the capital area. Many of the state’s main institutions are there, and that is where we go to get a wide range of services, cultural events and sports activities. Residents of other parts of the country who live far from Reykjavík face a similar situation.
Jóna Árný Þórðardóttir, town and port director of Fjarðabyggð, was elected the new chair of the Icelandic Ports Association on Friday. She takes over from Lúðvík Geirsson and is the very first woman to hold the post.
The Housing and Construction Authority (HMS) has finished estimating the property boundaries of about 1,150 farms in Northeast Iceland and East Iceland. The farms cover about 20 thousand square kilometres, and with the new data, property boundaries have been estimated in areas equivalent to about 83% of Iceland’s total area.
Jóna Árný Þórðardóttir, municipal and harbour director of Fjarðabyggð, is the first woman to serve as chair of the Icelandic Ports Association (Hafnarsamband Íslands). She was elected chair at the association’s annual congress, which ended today.
Jóna Árný Þórðardóttir, town manager and port director of Fjarðabyggð, was elected chair of the Icelandic Ports Association (Hafnarsamband Íslands) at the association’s annual congress, which ended today. She is also the first woman to serve as the association’s chair.
The Friends of the Old Church in Djúpivogur association will receive an annual grant of ISK 500,000 from Múlaþing over the next five years for the running and continued restoration of the old church.
East Iceland District Court has acquitted Fjarðabyggð of a claim by Hrefna Dagbjört Arnardóttir, owner of the farm Óseyri in Stöðvarfjörður, for recognition of the municipality’s liability for damages over livestock trespassing on the farm. Legal costs were waived. Hrefna demanded …
Little has changed in veterinary staffing in the southeast of the country. Shifts have not been filled since 16 August, all the way from Kirkjubæjarklaustur to Breiðdalsvík. The government has done nothing, says the chair of the veterinarians’ association.
The ptarmigan hunting season starts tomorrow in all parts of the country. Hunting is permitted from Friday through Tuesday for just under a month, or until Christmas where the season is longest. In South Iceland and Northwest Iceland hunting is allowed until 17 November, in the Westfjords a week longer, until 1 December in West Iceland and Northwest Iceland, and until 22 December in East Iceland. The ptarmigan population is considered strongest there. Hunting…
Support for the Social Democratic Alliance in the Northeast constituency jumps in a new opinion poll. The support the Independence Party gained over the summer is reversed. Four parties are polling enough to win seats in the constituency.
Plans to merge the police districts of East Iceland, South Iceland and the Westman Islands raise serious questions about residents’ safety and the management of policing. Before going any further, the government must show how the changes are meant to improve services here in the east. A larger district is no guarantee of stronger policing.
The person charged with smuggling almost 43 kilos of cocaine, found in their car on arrival in Seyðisfjörður in March, said at the main hearing of the case today that they were none the wiser about the substances found. They could offer no explanation of how such a large quantity came to be carefully hidden in their van. At the time this was by far the largest amount of cocaine ever seized in Iceland, but the strength…
Gunnar Lárus Karlsson, who broke the Icelandic record in backyard ultra running in style, was given a hero’s welcome when he arrived home in Reyðarfjörður this morning.
The owner of the Óseyri farm near Stöðvarfjörður says all unfenced land in Iceland appears to have been subject to some form of expropriation by a court ruling in his case against Fjarðabyggð. The court found that the municipality had no obligation to round up trespassing sheep from the farm because the animals had come from a shared grazing area.
The East Iceland Cancer Society is holding a pink event in Egilsstaðir tomorrow evening as part of the Icelandic Cancer Society’s awareness campaign. The East Iceland Cancer Society has received a good response to the campaign.
The East Iceland District Court has acquitted Fjarðabyggð of a claim by a forest farmer in Stöðvarfjörður, who argued that the municipality was obliged to round up sheep that strayed onto their unfenced land. One of the key questions in the case is where the sheep came from before they entered the farmer’s land.
The board of the East Iceland Teachers’ Association criticises changes to the primary school grading system, which replace letter grades with numbers. Education committees in East Iceland have voiced concern about how quickly the switch is due to happen.
Rás 1 and Rás 2 antenna broadcasts will drop out in parts of Austurland and the East Fjords for a while shortly after eleven o’clock. This happens while Rarik replaces a meter at Gagnheiði. The replacement affects 14 transmitters.
The municipality of Fjarðabyggð had no legal duty to round up sheep that strayed onto private land and damaged forestry in Stöðvarfjörður. The East Iceland District Court acquitted the municipality of a landowner’s claim that its liability for damages be recognised.
A heated debate erupted on Facebook over the weekend about the holdings and influence of British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe, who has bought dozens of farms in Northeast Iceland in recent decades. Anglers and musicians Bubbi Morthens and Pálmi Gunnarsson clashed, disagreeing about Ratcliffe and his plans.
Cooperation between rescue team members and the police special unit meant the search for a man who fell into Stuðlagil in August was successful. The man was found on the riverbed with the help of a camera. A rescue team member who specialises in swiftwater rescue says it matters that people are found, whether alive or dead.
In connection with the Björgun 2026 conference now taking place in Harpa in Reykjavík, many of the country’s rescue teams have brought their oldest vehicles to the venue. One that has drawn particular attention is the oldest vehicle of the Vopni rescue team in Vopnafjörður. It has been in service with the team for a full 42 years.
The Icelandic Meteorological Office has issued a warning because of a low-pressure system moving quickly across the country on Sunday. It brings strong winds. In East Iceland, however, the wind could pick up as early as tomorrow.
KPMG has adopted a new grants policy aimed at strengthening its support for community projects in rural areas. The application process has been changed and applications are now open.
Vopnafjörður municipality’s special Friendship Week began last Sunday, the first Friendship Week in the community in about four years. The young people of the village organised the programme themselves from A to Z, and participation by locals has been excellent.
Austurglugginn today publishes an analysis of the financial situation of Menntaskólinn á Egilsstöðum. It has wider relevance, because the school is one of ten that have been ordered to eliminate accumulated deficits in the coming years, and judging by the fiscal plan there appears to be every reason to be concerned about the upper secondary schools. ME’s position is the worst, however, as it must make up for, or repay, a deficit of ISK 300 million over four…
Marta María Winkel wonders what the mood is like right now at the homes of the five MPs who went swimming without permission in Vopnafjörður.
The revelry of five MPs got a little out of hand when the group went for an unauthorised swim one evening. The incident took place at Selárlaug in Vopnafjörður last week. The municipal manager of Vopnafjarðarhreppur has now confirmed in the media that…
Civil protection authorities in East Iceland are urging owners of boats and ships in the Eastfjords to check on their vessels because of high sea levels and a forecast of strong winds. There was torrential rain in the Eastfjords this morning.
There has been considerable rain in East Iceland today, but it has eased for the time being.
The Icelandic Meteorological Office has issued warnings for increased landslide risk in the Eastfjords and high sea levels tomorrow. It will be windy in the area, with considerable rainfall. A warning has also been issued for a snowstorm on Thursday.
The upcoming SPAR store in Neskaupstaður will be the chain’s first shop in Iceland with a self-service system that lets customers get in around the clock, all year round. Customers can expect lower prices when the store takes over from Kjörbúðin next month.
The municipalities of Fjarðabyggð, Múlaþing and Vopnafjarðarhreppur have already approved or put forward proposals aiming to keep tariffs from rising by more than 2.5% at the next new year, in order to curb inflation.
The retail company Drangar will open a SPAR store in Neskaupstaður next month, the first outside the capital region. At the beginning of next year it will be possible to shop there around the clock. SÚN has supported the changes.
The MPs who sneaked into a swim at Selárlaug in Vopnafjörður during constituency week committed trespass, in the view of Ásthildur Lóa Þórisdóttir, an MP for the People’s Party. She firmly rejects that such behaviour applies to MPs in general. Ingibjörg Isaksen, an MP for the Progressive Party, says there is nothing newsworthy about the swim.
Last week’s decision by Múlaþing’s family council not to give staff of the East Iceland Healthcare Institution (HSA) priority for preschool places has already had the effect that some staff have had to postpone returning to work after parental leave.
SPAR will open a store in Neskaupstaður in November, the chain’s first outside the capital region.
More than thirteen thousand people have signed a petition to the government for the protection of Seyðisfjörður, and the lists of signatures will be handed to Jóhann Páll Jóhannsson, Minister for the Environment, Energy and Climate, today at eleven o’clock.
Before the disaster scenario itself is set out, the place has to be pictured as a whole. Selstaðavík is not a blank spot on a map, and the pen site will not be set down in a vacuum. Here an old settlement landscape, high mountainsides, flood paths, shore, seabed and the people’s centuries-old ties to the sea meet.
MPs from the Northeast constituency went for a swim at Selárlaug in Vopnafjörður after closing time during constituency week. A local council representative is said to have given permission for this and guided them.
It is becoming hard for the people of Seyðisfjörður to resist the feeling that the Icelandic government’s newest national sport is to bully them. The community’s vital interests seem to be repeatedly set aside, the will of locals is disregarded and when one blow has passed, the next seems close behind. The same spot is struck again and again.
East Iceland contributes more to the state treasury than it receives back. State revenue attributable to the region is estimated at ISK 54.2 billion a year, while expenditure is ISK 45.5 billion. East Iceland’s net contribution is therefore ISK 8.7 billion a year.
Múlaþing’s family council has rejected healthcare workers’ requests for priority for preschool places in the municipality. In the council’s view, sufficient grounds have not been given for departing from the general principle that equality should apply in allocating preschool places.
The Fjarðabyggð town council objects to ideas presented by the Minister of Justice for merging police districts. Under them, the East Iceland district would be merged with the one to the south.
“We bear great responsibility for our own lifestyles, but that does not tell the whole story, nor does it assess the truth of the words ‘Everyone is the architect of their own fortune’.” The closing words of the last article suit as an introduction to this one. Short writing does not allow exhaustive discussion of the social determinants of health, and here is bounded by the red half-circle of the health rainbow (figure 1). Its heading…
The East Iceland District Court has sentenced a man for assaulting his cohabiting partner, the mother of his child, at their home at the beginning of this year. Among other things, the man grabbed the woman by the throat.
Jónína Lovísa Kristjánsdóttir, a special education teacher and project manager at Egilsstaðaskóli, was nominated yesterday for the Icelandic Education Awards for outstanding teaching over the years.
The possibility of installing simple rescue equipment at Stuðlagil is to be looked into, to make first response easier when accidents happen at the canyon. No single measure, however, resolves the dangers and difficulties in the area.
In my opinion, it is first and foremost communication and the people at the workplace that make a good workplace. Human resources are one of a workplace’s most important assets, so it matters to nurture them. A good workplace culture, trust, job satisfaction and good communication do not come about by themselves but are built up in the daily interactions of staff and managers.
Most of us remember a teacher who influenced our lives. A teacher who sparked an interest or encouraged us when something turned out to be hard. Today, on World Teachers’ Day, there is reason to pause and thank this important profession for its contribution to society.
Two tourists who were flown in serious condition to Reykjavík on Saturday after a four-car collision in East Iceland in which two others died are no longer in critical condition. According to the Red Cross, about ten people were given pastoral care because of the accident.
The first hundred days of the Independence Party–Progressive Party majority in Fjarðabyggð have been eventful. We have followed through on the budget’s projects and have also managed to add to maintenance and construction beyond what had previously been decided. It is a pleasing result in challenging economic conditions.
Múlaþing’s family council will likely decide at a meeting today whether to introduce some kind of temporary priority allocation of preschool places. The reason is a considerable staff shortage in preschools, particularly in Egilsstaðir, and the situation could begin to directly affect the operations of important institutions such as the East Iceland Healthcare Institution.
Water flowed yesterday over the spillway from Hálslón into the channel of Jökulsá á Dal. It is a sign that the reservoir is filling after a dry summer.
On Bylgjan’s noon news, the chief superintendent in East Iceland is interviewed about the fatal accident that occurred there yesterday.
Two foreign tourists are dead after the traffic accident at Háreksstaðakvísl yesterday. Two others are seriously injured.
Two people died in a four-car collision that occurred just before noon yesterday on Jökuldalsheiði at Háreksstaðakvísl. Eight people were reported to be in the vehicles. The dead were foreign tourists in their seventies.
A mass casualty plan was activated in East Iceland because of a four-car collision in Jökuldalur at Háreksstaðakvísl today. Eight people were reported to be in the vehicles and some were seriously injured. Two Icelandic Coast Guard helicopters, rescue team members, police, paramedics and the Red Cross are taking part in the operation. The accident is believed to be serious.
The bridge over Áreyjaá at the farm Áreyjar at the head of Reyðarfjörður is badly damaged after flooding yesterday. In Breiðdalur, repairs are under way so that Breiðdalsheiði can be reopened.
There is concern for the future of the Mjólkursamsalan (MS) plant in Egilsstaðir, which specialises in producing pizza cheese, because of plans to classify pizza cheese with added vegetable oil from now on as a food product not subject to tariffs. MS’s board chair criticises the government for not assessing the possible impact of the changes on domestic production.
The Fjarðabyggð town council urges the Icelandic government to resume targeted research into possible oil and gas deposits on Iceland’s continental shelf. All parties on the town council agree that the nation as a whole must be assured a fair share of any oil profits. The Norwegian state oil company believes there is no oil to be found in the Dragon Area.
There will be showers in many places today and southerly winds, though least so in the Northeast and East Iceland. It will be warmest in the northeast. Landslide warnings remain in force in the Southeast, the Eastfjords and the southern Central Highlands until Friday morning.
A worker at a construction site in Neskaupstaður was seriously injured on Tuesday when he fell from a balcony. He is not believed to be in critical condition.
Plans to build a new, changed and better town centre in Reyðarfjörður, which an investor first presented to the Fjarðabyggð town council a year and a half ago, are progressing well. It is quite possible that the first step of such development could begin as soon as next year.
Jökulsá í Fljótsdal and Kelduá are in full spate after heavy rain overnight and have burst their banks. A sheep farmer had to rescue sheep that were becoming trapped in the water. Roads have been damaged.