An entire church is being moved across a city so slowly it will take two days
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How do you move one of Sweden's most beloved wooden churches down the road? With a little bit of engineering, a lot of prayer – and some Eurovision contestants for good luck.
The Kiruna Church – called Kiruna Kyrka in Swedish – and its belfry are being moved this week along a three-mile route to a new city centre as part of the town's relocation.
The world's largest underground iron-ore mine is threatening to swallow the town, meaning the church and the rest of the town need to be moved.
This week, thousands of visitors have descended upon Kiruna, Sweden's northernmost town, 124 miles above the Arctic Circle.
It's home to roughly 23,000 people, including members of the Sami Indigenous people, spread over nearly 7,528 square feet.
Lena Tjarnberg, the church's vicar, kicked off the move with a blessing on Tuesday morning.
The transfer has been in the works since 2004 (Picture: Getty)
The entire town is under threat from the iron mine (Picture: Getty)
This week's move has turned into a two-day, highly choreographed media spectacle, run by LKAB, the state-owned mining company, and featuring an appearance by Swedish King Carl XVI Gustaf.
Musical performances will include a set from KAJ, Sweden's 2025 Eurovision entry, who had been the bookies' favourite to win this year's contest.
Known for both the Midnight Sun and the Northern Lights, Kiruna and the surrounding area are a major draw year-round for visitors to Swedish Lapland.
But not everyone is thrilled about LKAB's extravaganza. Lars-Marcus Kuhmunen, chairman of one of the Sami reindeer herding organisations in Kiruna, said LKAB's plans for a new mine could threaten reindeer migration routes and imperil the livelihood of herders in the area.
But the move of Kiruna's town centre, including the church, has been in the works since 2004.
Concerns about local wildlife have been raised (Picture: AFP)
As the mine expanded deeper underground, residents began seeing cracks in buildings and roads.
To prevent Kiruna from being swallowed up, officials began moving buildings to a new downtown at a safe distance from the mine.
So far, 25 buildings have been lifted up and wheeled east to safer land – sixteen, including the church, still remain.
The church is 131 feet wide and weighs 741 tonnes, meaning engineers had to widen a road and dismantle an entire viaduct to move the massive building.
A driver is steering the church to its new location, which it will reach on Wednesday, at just 0.5 to 1.5 km per hour.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
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