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Tag: national monuments

  • Laerdal Norway: Fire Immerses the Historical Wooden Village

    A large fire has destroyed at least 30 buildings in a historical village of Laerdal, Norway.

    The Laerdalsoyri village is home to at least 1,150 people. Sixteen residential homes were said to be some of the buildings ruined by the flames. Others included notable monuments.

    An emergency evacuation took place and at least 90 people were hospitalized for smoke inhalation, but no deaths or serious injuries have been reported.

    The fire started on Saturday and wasn’t put out by firefighter helicopters until midday Sunday. Nearby farmers also assisted in putting out the flames as more and more firefighters arrived to the scene.

    According to BBC News, “a helicopter was being delayed because of suspected media drones taking pictures in the area.”

    Local media companies have been notified by officials that drones hovering over the village may be hazardous to helicopters, as they are continuing to extinguish the surrounding area. (image)

    “I want to say a big thank you to all those who fought to bring the situation under control,” said Prime Minister Erna Solberg during a Norwegian TV interview.

    There is no concrete evidence to support why the fire started, but it has been reported that strong winds expanded the fire. Police officials are keeping an eye-out on the area and have sent out warnings of another potential fire.

    The Norway village, located in West Norwegian Fjords area, is well known for its 161 heritage and monumental sites. The area is a main attraction for tourists who visit the wooden-preserved site to see the 18th and 19th century constructed buildings.

    Among other historical and cultural properties in the world like the Medieval City of Rhodes in Greece or the Komodo National Park in Indonesia, Laerdalsoyri village is listed as an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

    The Urnes Stave Church, which was built in the 12th century but remodeled in the 17h century, is one of their biggest attractions.

    It was unharmed by the flames.

    Image via Youtube

  • Statue of Liberty Reopens Amid Government Shutdown

    A vast number of federal sectors were effected by the partial federal government shutdown. But, what most people weren’t aware of prior to the shutdown was that it would cause a ripple effect that would merge into other areas. The Statue of Liberty was one entity that suffered the consequences.

    Liberty Island National Park is one of the 33 sites under New York’s National Park Jurisdiction to be effected by the shut down. The sites have been closed since Oct. 1, as a result of the shutdown.

    A message was posted on the official Twitter time-line for the Statue of Liberty to announce the park’s closure due to the shutdown.

    However, on Saturday, a decision was made to reopen the park. But, the executive decision to reopen didn’t come as a government call. In a brief statement released on Friday, Gov. Andew Cuomo announced that the state of New York would initially foot the bill. According to USA Today, the statement entailed that the state of New York would pay approximately $61,600 a day to reopen through Oct. 18. The daily expenditures will be used to operate the park and the ferry which transports visitors to the monument site on Liberty Island in New York Harbor.

    An official announcement of the re-opening was also placed on the official Statue of Liberty Facebook page. The statement said:

    The Statue of Liberty and Liberty Island will be open October 13th through October 18th due to an agreement with the State of New York. Liberty Island is open to all ticket holders. The Pedestal and Crown will be open to those who have made reservations in advance. Reservations should made with at Statue Cruises www.statuecruises.com. Ellis Island remains closed at this time. 

    Liberty Island National Park. Liberty Island, located on the New York Harbor, brings in approximately 4 million visitors per year, which equates to an estimate of $174 million in economic activity. Today, Cuomo stressed how imperative it is to reopen the tourist attraction in the best interest of the state and its visitors. “When you close down the Statue of Liberty, you close down a good portion of the tourism that comes to New York City, and that is untold millions of dollars of damage,” Cuomo said.

    The Statue of Liberty landmark park was one of 10 national parks and monuments to reopen this weekend under similar state government stipulations.
    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • WWII Vets Memorial: Veterans Force Their Way In

    A group of World War II veterans refused to let today’s government shutdown prevent them from entering the WWII memorial site this morning. As much of the country is certainly aware of already, as of midnight on September 30, the federal government was effectively shutdown. As a result, all of the national parks and national monuments were also closed off from the public. Congress has been working federal spending deal, but was unable to do so, and the government was forced to shut down as a result.

    That information was not enough to stop a group of 92 Mississippi Gulf Coast Honor Flight Veterans from entering the memorial in Washington D.C. this morning. Although it was technically closed, they found a way in and were able to tour the site anyway. ABC News states that the vets were taking part in the Mississippi Gulf Coast Honor Flight that was originally established in 2011 in order to help WWII veterans fly from Mississippi to Washington D.C. It will help them travel to the memorial free of charge, and provide tours in order for them to see the memorials dedicated to their honorable service.

    Honor Flights scheduled for the month of October have been notified that the memorial will be closed until the federal government re-opens. Those that were able to tour the memorial today because the memorial was re-closed this afternoon and will remain that way until funding is restored. When the veterans arrived today, the memorial was encased with metal barricades. Dozens of people, including several in wheelchairs, made their way onto the grounds of the monument just before noon. They took a tour of the historic memorial while being watched by police officers, national park personnel and tourists, according to the Washington Times.

    The group was accompanied by a group of Congress members and Senator Steve King, of Iowa, reportedly distracted the guards and gave them the opportunity to break through. King, along with other members of Congress, voiced their support for the veterans after the incident. The group of veterans was only able to stay for less than a hour, but Park Service spokeswoman Carol Johnson said the officials were trying to be as accommodating as possible. It is hard to know how long it will be before these national parks and monuments are open to the public again, but let’s hope that this government shutdown does not last long and Congress can figure out what to do soon.

    Image via Youtube