Around 120,000 people watched Basel’s Swiss National Day fireworks
Basel's Swiss National Holiday fireworks over the Rhine on Tuesday night attracted around 120,000 spectators, according to organisers. The crowd watched the spectacle in warm weather on a clear night from the Rhine banks and the city’s bridges.
In a statement, the canton's public security organisations said the event went ahead without any major incidents. One tourist from Spain was fined 100 Swiss francs for firing a lit rocket over people's heads in a crowd. In addition, five people had to be taken to the hospital for treatment for various medical conditions.
Large crowds
The large firework display started on time at 11pm and lasted about 22 minutes. The 200 detonations were set off from two Rhine ships; above and below the Mittlere Brücke in the city centre. As always, visitors gathered in large crowds on the Rhine bridges.
Throughout Basel-Stadt, the fire risk from the large fireworks was considered minimal despite the continuing dry weather. However, fireworks and Alpine fires have already been banned for a week due to the arid fields and very dry forests in various communities in the area. To be on the safe side, the neighbouring canton of Baselland banned all fires and fireworks on Monday.
Premiere for water slide
The official Basel fireworks were preceded by a nationwide festive event with food, stalls, and live music along the banks of the Rhine and on Marktplatz in the late afternoon. Among other Rhine attractions, a longship race was part of the events, and for the first time, there was a 120-metre-long water slide in Basel.
As of late afternoon, the Mittlere Brücke was only accessible for pedestrians, and the city centre was partly blocked for tram and bus traffic from 4 pm onwards. Later in the evening, the Wettsteinbrücke and Johanniterbrücke were closed to all traffic.
After the festival on the Rhine, the official Basel Federal celebration was to follow on Bruderholz-Hügel on 1 August. However, the grass there was so dry that the organisers took the decision to cancel the fireworks and the traditional bonfire, as well as closing all private campfire sites.
Five Swiss people collapse after eating marijuana cookies in Lörrach-Stetten
A group of Swiss teenagers had to be helped by the emergency services after collapsing in Lörrach-Stetten after eating marijuana cookies on Tuesday.
The rescue services, emergency doctor, and the police were called in to deal with the teenagers at around 2.40pm after they were seen collapsed in front of a hotel.
The emergency crews encountered five people who were recognisably under the influence. They were barely responsive, with some allegedly unconscious. The rescue services and an emergency doctor took care of the young people and had to take four of them to the hospital. Investigations by the police revealed that the five teenagers, aged between 15 and 19, live in Basel and Riehen.
It later emerged they had prepared and eaten marijuana cookies before cycling across the border to Lörrach-Stetten tohave dinner in Germany. After the meal, the young people's condition grew increasingly worse, which was believed to be nothing to do with what they had eaten. The cantonal police of Basel-Stadt were informed about the incident.
Masked football hooligans start fight with Greek fans in Basel hotel lobby
At least one person was injured in a fight in the lobby of a hotel in Basel on Wednesday afternoon. The hotel's furniture was also damaged.
According to the Department of Justice and Security of Basel-Stadt, about 20 masked people in black entered the hotel on Grosspeterstrasse shortly before 2pm on Wednesday and started a fight with a group of Greek football fans.
The cantonal police said that the group then fled in the direction of Jakob-Burckhardt-Strasse. An immediate search was unsuccessful and the police are looking for witnesses. In a statement, the police say many of the victims were unwilling to testify.
The Greek football fans are believed to have travelled to Basel for a Champions League qualifying game. The second match between FC Basel and PAOK Saloniki took place in Basel on Wednesday night. The game ended 3:0 for Saloniki. The FC Basel had already lost the first game 1:2 in Greece.