Air Mechanics in Iceland on Strike

Air mechanics at Icelandair are currently on strike, which means that the airline’s flights from Keflavík International Airport to Oslo, Stockholm, Paris, Copenhagen, Manchester/Glasgow and London before noon today will be canceled. More

Norway pushing to break IMF-Iceland deadlock over Icesave

The finance committee of the Norwegian parliament has voted to loan funds to Iceland regardless of the ongoing Icesave dispute. It was the representatives of the Christian Democratic Party who pushed for the resolution. The committee declared that Norway should loan Iceland money regardless of the ongoing Icesave dispute with Iceland on one side and the [...] More

Changed Activity in South Iceland Volcano

The volcanic eruption on Fimmvörduháls, which comes from the volcano underneath the Eyjafjallajökull icecap in south Iceland, is changing in character. A cumulus rose up from the fissure around 7:15 am, reaching a height of four kilometers. More

Volcano Still Erupting

The Eyjafjallajökull eruption continues to rage on, although it has apparently calmed down a tad since three o' clock this morning. Also, geologists are saying the eruption should have come as no surprise.
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Iceland MPs to Britain

A group of Icelandic members of parliament are on their way to Britain to try and smooth relations between the two countries.
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Icelandair Strike Begins

Airplane mechanics for Icelandair delcared their strike in effect as of 1:00 this morning.
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Is Icelandic Tycoon Planning London Comeback?

Icelandic businessman Jón Ásgeir Jóhannesson, former CEO and chairman of the now defunct conglomerate Baugur Group which had shares in a number of stores on the London high street, is allegedly planning a comeback with new budget chain stores. More

Eyjafjallajökull Eruption: Video Footage

Grapevine embarked upon a rather fruitless trip to the South coast of Iceland to try and spot some volcanic activities earlier today. Unfortunately, we didn't manage to make it up to the eruption site. When we got back, however, we did find this sweet footage of the eruption, which was apparently shot from an Icelandic Coast Guard helicopter last night. More

South Iceland Farmers Urged to Watch Out for Ash

Halldór Runólfsson, senior veterinarian at the Icelandic Food and Veterinary Authority, urges farmers near the eruption zone in south Iceland to be mindful of ash fall, which could poison their life stock. More

Safer not to Sleep at Home

“I think most of us did not sleep well last night,” Ólafur Eggertsson farmer at Thorvaldseyri said to mbl.is. He is one of about 50 people living in farms close to the Eyjafjallajökull, the site of the volcanic eruption in Iceland. He is happy that he can sleep in a safer place this coming night. More

Iceland volcano update

The volcanic eruption still taking place in southern Iceland is being described as small and the amount of ash created is also small. Fears remain that the Fimmvorduhals eruption will trigger a much larger eruption at Katla. The vast majority of the 600 evacuees have now been allowed to return home and roads have been re-opened. [...] More

Update on Iceland Volcanic Eruption

A meeting between geophysicists and members of the Icelandic Civil Protection Department at Hvolsvöllur ended about an hour ago. They concluded that the situation in the area around Eyjafjallajökull glacier is still risky because of the ongoing volcanic eruption, yet most roads have been opened and people were allowed to return to their homes. More

Hard to Predict How Long Iceland Eruption Will Last

Geophysicist Magnús Tumi Gudmundsson said at a press conference in Hvolsvöllur earlier today that it is difficult to predict how long the volcanic eruption in Eyjafjallajökull will last. It could end tomorrow but it could also last for as long as two years. More

EYJAFJALLAJÖKULL ERUPTION, 15 HOURS IN

Grapevine's volcanologist student friend James Ashworth wrote this for us. Expect more from James soon: It is 1am. My phone rings. My friends' phones are all ringing. Emails and Facebook messages are flying around. Why? A volcano is erupting, we are volcanology students, and this is the most exciting thing since... well, since the last time something really exciting happened. More

Icelandair Boston Plane to Leave for Iceland Shortly

The Icelandair plane, which was supposed to leave for Boston to Iceland last night but was grounded due to the volcanic eruption in Eyjafjallajökull, is scheduled to take off in an hour and a half. The flight was delayed due to risk of volcanic ash fall. More

Benni Hemm Hemm Celebrates Album Release

Icelandic musician Benni Hemm Hemm will celebrate the release of his sixth album, the five-track Retaliate, with a concert over Easter in Akureyri and Reykjavík. The album will arrive on the European market through Kimi Records on April 9. More

Another South Iceland Volcano Might Start to Erupt

Geophysicist Páll Einarsson said all known eruptions in Eyjafjallajökull have been in connection with eruptions in the neighboring volcano Katla underneath the Mýrdalsjökull icecap. Now that Eyjafjallajökull has started to erupt, Katla might follow. More

Volcano erupts in South Iceland

After weeks of small earthquakes in the area, the Fimmvorduhals volcano near the Eyjafjallajokull glacier has finally erupted, causing disruption to flights and a spate of evacuations. Photo: mbl.is/RAX The volcano is sending a plume of ash and smoke in a westerly and north westerly direction due to easterly winds. The amount of ash being generated appears [...] More

Premiere of King’s Road Coming Up

The new feature film by Icelandic film editor and director Valdís Óskarsdóttir, King’s Road (original title: Kóngavegur), will premiere on March 26 in the cinemas Smárabíó in Kópavogur, Háskólabíó in Reykjavík and in Borgarbíó in Akureyri. More

Eruption is close to Popular Walking Path Fimmvörduháls

Many tourists to Iceland come to Skógar with its beautiful folk museum and the spectacular Skógarfoss. Both are a must when you take the southern path on Highway 1 in Iceland. Others go to Thórsmörk, a fabulous oasis in between the mountains and glaciers. Not so many, but still quite a few take the walk over Fimmvörduháls. More

Great Interest in Eruption says Hotel Owner

Fridrik Pálsson, owner of luxury Hotel Rangá close to the eruption in Fimmvörduháls, says that his phone has not stopped since the eruption started. “I was at a convention in Hólmavík on the West fjords last night when a staff member at the hotel called me to tell me that an eruption had started. This was just before midnight and I jumped into my car and drove all night to come to the hotel as soon as possible.” More

Iceland Eruption Stable

Geophysicist Freymódur Sigmundsson says that the volcanic activity seemed stable the three hours he watched the eruption from a circling airplane this morning. He says it is possible that the rift will grow longer as time passes by. According to mbl.is Sigmundsson said the eruption activity was impressive. More

New Exhibition in Reykjavík City Library

The exhibition “Rababari” (“Rhubarb”) by the visual artists Anna Sigrídur Hródmarsdóttir and Gudrún Hadda Bjarnadóttir opened in the Artótek gallery in the Reykjavík City Library on Friday. More

Swedish football club bans foreign languages

The Swedish football club Brommapojkarna (BP) has introduced a contentious language policy that demands all players at the club converse only in Swedish, or find they are ineligible for team selection. Despite some public criticism, the chairperson of BP, Ola Danhard told The Local that: “this is a non-issue”. Danhard pointed out that given that almost [...] More

Iceland Eruption Video. Amazing Pictures

The airplane of the Coast Guard flew over the eruption early this morning according to ruv.is. Scientists and journalists were onboard to watch the eruption and the lava flow up close. For three hours the plane circled the area and Karl Sigurbjörnsson of RÚV filmed the accompanying video.  More

Iceland Eruption. Quick Evacuation Completed in Five Hours

Evacuation in response to the volcanic eruption in Eyjafjallajökull glacier has concluded after an extremely rapid response, according to officials. Everyone known to have been in the area has been brought to safety and is now accounted for.

Currently the eruption appears to be limited to an area where there is little ice - meaning there is no longer believed to be an imminent threat of a flood unless the eruption spreads along the fissure.

Nordic region cars among Europe’s oldest

Iceland’s fleet of private cars is older than elsewhere in Europe, with the average car two years older than in the EU. The average age of private cars in Iceland is 10.2 years, according to the newest figures from the Icelandic Roads Administration. The average age of private cars in EU countries is 8.5 years, according [...] More

All Flights to and from Iceland Delayed because of Eruption

All flight traffic to and from Iceland has been stopped because of the volcanic eruption. About a thousand Icelandair passengers which were going to Europe this morning are now stranded in Iceland, according to mbl.is. These are flights to London, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Oslo and Stockholm. More

Finnish children growing bigger, faster

A new study of children in the Finnish city of Espoo has uncovered new standards for national physical growth curves. The report showed that today’s children are not only larger at birth than their parents, but that they are growing faster and have bigger heads. “Because of the obsolete curves, children who are normal have been [...] More

Breaking News: An eruption Started by Eyjafjallajökull Glacier at Midnight

At about 11.30 on Saturday night some residents in Fljótshlíd noticed that an orange colored stroke appeared behind the glacier Eyjafjallajökull. The area has been under constant surveilance in recent days because of earthquake activiety and it was clear that as feared. an eruption had started. Immediately an evacuation plan was put into effect for the 400 people in the area who were thought to be in danger. The operation was successful and at five o'clock all had been regisered at Hvolsvöllur, where a rescue center was set up.

Volcanic Eruption: Actually In Fimmvörðuháls, All Is Well

Icelandic state news outlet RÚV has posted a public announcement in English regarding the volcanic eruption which we reported on earlier. Everyone is safe and all is well, at least right now. Read their announcement after the jump. More

Volcano Erupts Under Eyjafjallajökull

A volcanic eruption has just begun under the Eyjafjallajökull glacier. This has been verified by local authorities in neighbouring Hvolsvöllur. Vísir reports that farms in the Fljótshlíð area and by Markarhlíð are already being evacuated. Locals in the area have confirmed that they are viewing flames and a steady stream of lava from the glacier.
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Eruption in Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajokull

Volcanic Eyjafjallajokull, in Southern Iceland, is reported to be erupting. According to the police in Selfoss, evacuation from adjacent farms has commenced. The Icelandic Meteorological Office has received reports of volcanic blaze in the glacier but no major earthquake activities have been recorded as of yet. More

Icesave causing Paris Club headaches

The Icesave issue has been discussed more than once by the Paris Club, an organisation more used to talking about the debt problems of third world nations. Individual financial officials in the ‘club’ expressed their deep concern that Iceland’s hard stance could set an unwelcome precedent. The Paris Club is an informal association of economic officials [...] More

Private Military Company Given Green Light

ECA Program - a private company specializing in military consultancy with governments around the world - has apparently already been given the green light by the government to use the old base in Keflavík.
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Support for Ruling Coalition Drops

Support for the ruling coalition of the Social Democrats and Leftist-Greens took a significant hit in a recent poll, while support for the Independence Party - driven from power after months-long protests just over a year ago - has seen a huge boost in support.
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Iceland Accused of Illegal Whale Meat Exports

The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) has accused Iceland of breaking an agreement on the exporting of whale meat.
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Private Army Sets Sights on Iceland

A private company offering military support has expressed interest in working with the Icelandic government. Many Icelanders are strongly opposed to the idea.
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"Sensible" to Ban Products of Child Labor, Says Business Minister

Minister of Business Gylfi Magnússon told reporters that he believes it sensible to institute a ban on importing products made from child labor.
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Majority Polled Oppose State Artist Stipends

The majority of Icelanders are against any sort of state stipends or grants for artists, a poll by MMR that was published yesterday reveals. More

Population Declines for First Time in Over 100 Years

The latest figures from Statistics Iceland show that the Icelandic population has declined for the first time since the late 19th century.
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Iceland's Debt 78% of GDP

Iceland's debt is equal to 78% of its GDP, according to a press release from the Ministry of Finance.
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Iceland Could Become One Single Voting District

A bill has been submitted to parliament that, if passed, would combine all voting districts in the country into one.
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Iceland on the International Front

The Minister of Foreign Affairs reports that the ruling coalition is in agreement when it comes to joining the European Union. The British and Dutch have said they are willing to go back to the table over Icesave.
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Russian Military Loves Icelandic Airspace

The Russian air force can't seem to get enough of Iceland's skies, it seems, as RÚV reports their military aircraft have buzzed us 62 times in the past four years.
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Icelanders With Fewest Food Allergies

Icelanders have the fewest food allergies and intolerances of any other European people, according to new research from Imperial University in London.
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Debt Analyst Calls Foreign Loans "Kiss of Death"

Alex Jurshevski, of the company Recovery Partners, spoke very frankly on the news discussion show Silfur Egils yesterday, saying Iceland is making a big mistake in taking out foreign loans to pay down its debt.
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