Heavy snow blocks Alpine resorts in Switzerland and France
The Swiss ski resort of Zermatt was cut off and tourists and residents were told to stay indoors in the French resort of Tignes because of heavy snow in the Alps on Thursday.Tignes Mayor Serge Revial said there was a high risk of avalanches and "we had to make a decision to protect people", after more than a metre of snow was dumped over the town.Although snow is not uncommon in the Alps in April, the disruption left thousands of homes in the Savoie region of eastern France without power.In neighbouring Switzerland, the Simplon Pass into Italy and the Great St Bernard Tunnel were closed to traffic, while two cantons were badly affected.
In Valais and Bernese Oberland, tourists heading for ski holidays were hit by the disruption.Road and rail routes were cut off into the resort of Zermatt in the southern canton of Valais; power was cut throughout Thursday and mobile phone networks were badly disrupted.Queues built up outside the only supermarket open in the town, according to Swiss media.The Alertswiss app warned of the risk of avalanches and falling trees in Valais as well as major disruption to transport. Schools were closed for the day in the city of Sion.
People travelling to the area for Easter were advised to delay their trips until Saturday. Local police urged people to stay at home if possible.South of Zermatt, power outages were reported in 37 of the 74 municipalities in the Aosta Valley in north-west Italy, and a bridge collapsed in Biella in nearby Piedmont.The biggest problem in north-west Italy was heavy rain, as rivers burst their banks and a 92-year-old man was thought to have drowned because of flooding in his home at Monteu da Po near Turin.A torrent of water cascaded through the streets of the village, in hills close to the River Po.Red alerts were issued in several valleys, but the biggest concern was for the Po where river levels were expected to peak in the next 24 hours.Meteorologists said in some areas more than 20cm of rain had fallen in 36 hours, and extreme peaks had been recorded of even higher levels."It's been raining non-stop for days, very, very hard, although it's stopped now," Manuela, a 33-year-old Turin resident, told the BBC."Two rivers, the Po and the Dora, near Turin have burst their banks. The city is fine but they had to shut several bars and restaurants by the river in Turin."
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Daily Mirror
25 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Race Across The World stars 'not cocky' as they reach final after tense battle
They've raced 14,000km across Asia now the hit show's loyal audience of 7million will finally find out which of the four teams has clinched victory It's the final of the BBC1 series Race Across the World, and the win could go to any of the four remaining teams who have trekked 8,700 miles from the Great Wall of China across Nepal, to the bottom of India. As they start the seventh and final leg, current leaders Tom and Caroline Bridge are seen as the biggest threat by the other competitors when it comes to taking the title - and the £20K prize money. Brothers Brian and Melvyn Mole - both in their 60s - have always been wary of Caroline, who fears that she's missed out on life by being a housewife. 'She had a glint in her eye from about leg two and I thought 'crumbs this girl is out to win this',' Brian reckoned. But he and Melvyn are determined to do everything they can to clinch the title themselves - along with the £20k prize - having surprised themselves by winning three legs during the competition. 'If you enter something like this, you enter to win, and you do your best, and it keeps you self-believing that you're capable of doing anything,' Brian said. The pair have proved popular with viewers and bookies alike - until they finished 17 hours behind the leaders in last week's leg after opting to take the slower route to Panaji, which avoided Mumbai. Now they know they have a serious amount of catching up to do if they are to triumph. Despite this, Melvyn said: 'I'm proud of what we've done. I'm disappointed that we dropped on the last leg. I don't necessarily think the race is about winning, though, it's about the experiences.' BBC viewers have loved watching the estranged brothers, who were treated differently by their strict, old-fashioned parents, rebuild their bond and enjoy spending time together. Driving instructor Melvyn, 65, reflected: 'We have got closer together, there is no doubt about that. Brian didn't surprise me, but I think how well we got on did.' Financial advisor Brian, 62, said that they now plan to keep in regular contact. 'We want to do things together a bit more, and if there's an adventure to be had again, we'll do it! I think friends and others that know me would have probably thought I would not survive the race but no surprise to me, I always knew we could do it. We are both winners in what we've achieved so far on the race.' Both men said they'd jump at the chance to replay the experience, with Brian explaining: 'As uncomfortable, as irritating, as frustrating as the journeys sometimes were, I'd do it again.' Sisters Elizabeth and Letitia said they also viewed the mother and son team of Tom and Caroline as their biggest rivals. 'They've been steady climbers and have been very determined,' Letitia said. 'But Fin and Sioned really want to win a leg! Anything could happen.' And Elizabeth hasn't written off Brian and Melvyn, pointing out they had 'become so competitive'. The pair would love the victory for themselves. 'We've really pushed ourselves to work as hard as we can, keep on fighting and be resilient.' Like the Mole brothers, they feel that the show has put their sibling relationship on a whole new footing. 'I think coming out of the show we're a lot more comfortable with each other, we're talking more and expressing ourselves and communicating better,' introverted, younger, wiser Letitia, 26, said. Extroverted older sister Elizabeth, 33, said she'd been thrilled with how they'd both coped. 'I don't think I thought Letitia was as resilient as she was, and also her confidence, she's always stood behind me or pushed me to take the lead, but there were so many times where she just went for it.' Current leaders Caroline, 60, and 21-year-old Tom admit they are going all out to take the title. 'We're desperate to win, and we also don't want it to end, we're loving it so much – we're having more fun than we thought we would,' Caroline declared. 'The pressure is on both of us, we're in the lead so we're trying to feel confident but not cocky because we know anything can go wrong at any time.' They feel the biggest challengers are the Welsh teenagers and the sisters. Tom said: 'I think Fin and Sioned are people to look out for as they managed to make a massive comeback, and when it comes to the run route, they can run quicker and faster than we can, so that's a worry. Caroline added: 'Elizabeth and Letitia have always worried us, they've been so consistent, I don't think they've ever been bottom.' Caroline said that she'd learned many life lessons along the way, including 'to try and be more spontaneous and have a more carefree attitude and try and stop worrying. Being in India showed me you have to grab life with two hands because it is so precious. I've had a glimpse at life through a younger person's eyes, who hasn't got the weight of the world on his shoulders, and its taught me to enjoy the simple things.' They said their whole relationship had changed as a result of the show. 'We are very happy in each other's company, more so as adults rather than mother and son. Age doesn't come into it any more.' Tom said he couldn't believe how much better they'd got at travelling over the course of the series. 'I think looking back to how we were doing in leg one, compared to how we're doing now in leg seven, it's a massive achievement.' Teenage racer Fin Gough admitted that he never wants to go home. The 19-year-old, competing alongside 18-year-old girlfriend Sioned Cray, said he can't bear the thought of it all ending. 'I would pay everything I have to do it again,' he sighed in an interview given before setting off for the last time. 'I don't want to come back.' Sioned says she and Fin have learned loads from their travels. 'I think it was being together with no-one else to direct us in any way,' Sioned said. 'It was having the responsibility of making all the decisions ourselves – that was a huge challenge for us at the start, but we did get used to it.' They now think the title could go to any of the four teams. 'At the start it was always Elizabeth and Letitia - no matter how well we thought we were doing, they always seemed to be in front of us - then it was Tom and Caroline and right now it's everyone's game.' They'd love to triumph themselves. Fin, who has type 1 diabetes, said: 'I'm so proud of us for doing it, fresh out of school and so young. We've faced so many challenges along the way, to come out on top would prove to ourselves that we can do it.' Sioned agreed: 'I think doing the race is a huge accomplishment, but being able to say that we're the winners and having that title would be amazing.'
Wales Online
2 hours ago
- Wales Online
Ryanair accused of refusing to let family board flight to Dublin over visa issues
Ryanair accused of refusing to let family board flight to Dublin over visa issues Christina Finn and her husband Cameron had travelled to London from Belfast on Friday for a CBeebies event with their five-month-old son when they were refused boarding Christina while she was at the airport A family from Northern Ireland has alleged that they were denied boarding on a Ryanair flight departing from London, after being wrongly told they would require a visa to travel into Ireland from the UK. Christina Finn and her husband Cameron had journeyed from Belfast to London on Friday for a CBeebies event with their five-month-old son. However, upon their return from Stansted to Dublin via the budget airline, they were refused entry to the plane. Christina told Belfast Live how their troubles began when they were unable to check in for their flight online. "We had flown to London on Friday morning from Belfast for a meeting with the BBC, and we were to fly home from London to Dublin and then get the bus up to Belfast as that was the cheapest option, and it is something we would do all the time," she explained. Christina along with her baby She added: "We were travelling with our five-month-old baby, and it was important that we got home early enough, as he is quite unwell and has to have medication twice a day. For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation, sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here "When we went to check in on the app, it wouldn't let me click through to our booking at all and I thought the issue was with my phone so when we got to the airport, we had to check in at the desk where we then had to pay a fine for not checking in online." Article continues below Christina recounted that after settling the fine, the Ryanair staff requested to see their passports. She informed them that they had travelled to London with easyJet using their driving licences but did have their passports, which had recently expired. Sharing her travel woes, Christina recounted the passport predicament they faced: "My husband has an Irish passport and I have a British one which have both recently expired. With the baby due, we were waiting until he was born to renew them so that we could just do it at the same time. "We informed the staff that we had flown over on our driving licences so he took them away and came back with a man who told us that because my husband has an expired Irish passport, he would be allowed on the flight to Dublin but as my passport was a British one they couldn't let me on the plane." She continued to detail the confusion with airline personnel, explaining the rights under the Common Travel Area: "The staff informed me that as a UK citizen I would need a visa to travel to Ireland as it is in the EU and I tried to explain to them that that wouldn't apply due to the Common Travel Area. "I told him that we lived in Northern Ireland and he then questioned how I had a British passport and couldn't seem to understand that it was a pretty common thing for people to fly to Dublin then travel on to Belfast. He also said that we would need to have evidence that we had booked onward travel from Dublin to Belfast." Christina's frustration grew as the situation escalated: "As I questioned it, he said that he was speaking to someone on the phone who told him that if they let us on the plane and if we arrived in Dublin we would be stopped at passport control and the airline would be fined between £500 and £1000 for allowing me on the plane without a valid passport." Finally, she revealed the costly resolution offered by the airline: "The staff member informed them that the only way around their issue would be for them to book a new flight directly to Belfast which would cost them £490. "We had to borrow the money from my mum for the flights and while I was on the phone to her she looked up the Government website which stated that you did not need a passport or visa to travel between the UK and Ireland. She sent me a screenshot of this which I showed to the man and he said he would look into it then he walked away. "I decided to ring the British embassy in Dublin who directed me to call the Irish embassy in London and the woman on the phone was horrified. She said that there was no requirement for people to have a passport for travelling between the UK and Ireland and that there was also no need for a visa. "However, she explained that Ryanair could have its own policy requiring travellers to have a passport." Christina expressed that the ordeal left her feeling like a "second-class citizen". A spokesperson for Ryanair responded: "In accordance with Ryanair's TandC's, which these passengers agreed to at the time of booking, these passengers failed to check-in online before arriving at London Stansted Airport (5 June). Therefore, these passengers were correctly asked to pay the required airport check-in fee (£55 per passenger), however refused to do so, and became aggressive towards the agents at the check in desk at London Stansted Airport. "All passengers travelling with Ryanair agree to check-in online before arriving at their departure airport and all passengers are sent an email reminding them to do so 24hrs before departure. "These passengers were subsequently correctly denied boarding to this flight from London Stansted to Dublin (5 June) as these passengers' passports did not meet the requirements for travel as both passports had expired in 2024. "It is each passenger's responsibility to ensure that their passport is valid for travel in line with the relevant State requirements at the time of travel. Article continues below "These requirements are clearly set out on and passengers are reminded with pop-up messages during booking. Passengers travelling between Ireland and the UK are required to carry a valid passport for travel. Therefore, as these passengers did not present a valid passport for this flight from London Stansted to Dublin Airport, they were correctly denied boarding."
The Herald Scotland
3 hours ago
- The Herald Scotland
They call it Scotland's most romantic garden - I fell in love with it
Here, enclosed within high walls, is a rose garden like no other. It is the work of the appropriately-named Rose Foyle, who fell in love with the flower as a child and who has filled the grounds of her Georgian home with such extravagant numbers of them that in early summer the garden takes on a dream-like quality. The roses at Carolside tumble from heavy rope swags, they climb the walls and spill from the borders, where they mingle in cottage-garden profusion with lady's mantle, sweet peas, artichokes and strawberries. Hardly an inch of soil is visible beneath the dense planting while the roses that scramble up arches add to the feeling of being totally immersed in flowers. Carolside in the Borders (Image: unknown) Not only do the roses look beautiful, but the scent is almost overpowering and the colours of the perennials that surround them, including the tall spikes of blue delphiniums and the sky blue flowers of Campanula persicifolia 'Cornish Mist' have been carefully selected to blend with the soft shades of roses that Rose Foyle prefers. Most of the roses are pre-1900 Gallicas. These 'French' roses, which are the ones grown by the Empress Josephine at Malmaison near Paris, are actually native to Turkey and the group includes the Apothecary's rose 'Rosa gallica Officionalis' and the pink striped Rosa mundi, or 'Versicolour', while one of the most prolific roses to grow in the garden is the exuberant rambler 'Paul's Himalayan Musk'. This is a remarkably vigorous plant, which can grow up to 12 metres in length and so is only found in gardens which can give it space to spread. It produces an abundance of sprays of tiny pink flowers that give off the strong, musky fragrance that gives it its name. The roses at Carolside (Image: unknown) Despite being in a heavy frost pocket, Carolside's roses are strong and healthy and they thrive on the free-draining soil thanks to regular applications of compost which gives them the richness and nutrients that they need. Careful pruning early in the year helps to encourage good growth and an abundance of flower buds while the shelter provided by the walls prevents the flowers from being damaged by high winds. Set at the far end of the garden is a range of heritage greenhouses, filled with pelargoniums and other hot-house plants, while the lawn close to the house, where teas are served on special open days, is edged with tall grasses which give this part of the garden a more contemporary feel. Outside of the walled garden the mood is more restrained, with a herb garden, smooth lawns and clipped box hedging, while the wooded slopes that surround the house create a natural amphitheatre. Details Carolside is 35 miles from Edinburgh, one mile north of Earlston on the A68. Carolside is open on Saturdays and Sundays until September 1, 11am - 5pm. Tickets: £8/children under 16 free. Tel: 01896 849272 info@
