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Today in Denmark: A roundup of the latest news on Thursday

Find out what's going on in Denmark today with The Local's short roundup of the news in less than five minutes.

Today in Denmark: A roundup of the latest news on Thursday
The royal ship 'Dannebrog' at the harbour at Fredrikshavn on Wednesday. Photo: Bo Amstrup/Ritzau Scanpix

Police report calm response to extended bar opening hours

Last night saw an easing of coronavirus restrictions come into effect, permitting bars and cafes to stay open until 2am. Closing time under the outgoing restrictions was midnight.

Police districts across the country said they have not noticed any initial change in the behaviour of drinking establishment patrons, according to broadcaster DR.

But Funen Police said they have been in contact with a number of bars who have decided to wait before making use of the new provision because they were unclear about whether the rules actually took effect from last night (Wednesday going into Thursday) or tonight.

Euros matches in Copenhagen did not cause Covid-19 spike, health authority says

Covid-19 infection data following Euro 2020 matches in Copenhagen show that large events can be hosted in a corona-safe manner, experts have said to DR following the publication of data related to the matches hosted at Parken stadium.

According to the Danish Patient Safety Authority (Styrelsen for Patientsikkerhed), 152 people were infected with coronavirus through attending the matches. As such, they are not classed as ‘super spreader’ events.

“This has shown that these matched were manageable. It’s shown that it was not irresponsible to host the matches at Parken,” Aarhus University virologist Søren Riis Paludan told DR.

All of Denmark’s three group stage matches took place in Copenhagen, as did the last-16 clash between Croatia and Spain.

Two arrested for throwing wood from bridge

Central and West Zealand police have arrested two young men who are suspected of throwing wood from a footbridge near the town of Ringsted, news wire Ritzau reports.

The men are suspected of throwing a piece of wood on to one of the town’s ring roads, causing a truck driver to brake sharply.

Such dangerous antisocial behaviour near busy roads has been reported relatively often in various parts of Denmark in recent years and has previously had fatal consequences.

READ ALSO: Danish police look for clues after latest motorway bridge attack

Queen Margrethe visits the Faroe Islands

The Queen is on an official visit to the Faroe Islands from today until Monday.

According to Her Majesty’s official schedule, the Danish monarch will be officially welcomed at Tórshavn today before visiting the Faroese parliament, Lagtinget. The Faroe Islands is a self-governed autonomous territory within the Danish kingdom.

READ ALSO: Goodbye Denmark? Faroese weigh pulling free of Danish grip

Queen Margrethe is also due to stop by a number of other towns and bygder (villages) on the Faroe Islands where she will be presented with elements of the local culture, environment and gastronomy.

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TODAY IN DENMARK

Today in Denmark: A roundup of the news on Friday

Stock exchange façade collapses, police seize thousands of cars from reckless drivers, Copenhagen's Palads building closer to demolition and more news from Denmark on Friday.

Today in Denmark: A roundup of the news on Friday

Børsen’s façade collapses on third day after fire 

The facade of Copenhagen’s historic former stock exchange collapsed yesterday evening, rescue services said, as work to put out the last of the flames continued for a third day.

Half of the 17th-century Børsen building was destroyed and its 54-metre spire tumbled to the ground in the fire that broke out early Tuesday, in scenes that shocked Denmark.

“Unfortunately, there has been a collapse of the facade,” Copenhagen’s rescue service said in a post to X, formerly Twitter.

They added that all workers had been evacuated from the scene and no injures were reported.

Containers had been placed around the building in an attempt to support the façade, but officials said they had been unable to anchor them to the structure.

READ ALSO: Denmark’s stock exchange fire ‘could result in court case’ 

Vocabulary: ydermur – façade

Heavy rain across the country today

More April rain will fall today, with up to 10-15 millimetres falling in the soggiest areas.

A low pressure front means that southern parts of the country will see the worst of the rain, DR writes.

Things will begin to clear up this afternoon, however beginning in the north.

Vocabulary: sydlige egne – southern parts

Copenhagen Municipality votes on first step towards demolishing historic building

The Palads cinema building in central Copenhagen is a step closer to demolition following a vote at the city government.

The owner of the building, Nordisk Film, has had plans to pull it down and build a tower since 2017, in part because of low demand from cinema-goers.

But the plan must go through several steps to receive municipal approval, including a vote on a so-called lokalplan for the location on Axeltorv square.

Thursday evening’s vote approved the first steps towards developing this plan, newswire Ritzau reports, meaning the eventual construction of a 36-metre tall building, which would have a cinema in its basement, is a step closer.

Vocabulary: nedrivning – demolition 

3,000 vehicles confiscated in 3 years under new reckless driving rule

New rules introduced in March 2021 giving police extended powers to seize vehicles from reckless drivers have resulted in 2,966 confiscated cars, the Justice Ministry said in a statement.       

Reckless driving encompasses offences including drunk driving, street racing and exceeding 200 km/h on motorways.

The rules allow police to seize the vehicle used for the offence on the spot, regardless of its owner. The car can then be auctioned.

Vocabulary: vanvidskørsel – reckless driving

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