Why it counts to heed the authorities

No fires please. © KEYSTONE / ALEXANDRA WEY

Almost every article published by swissinfo.ch contains a percentage, an age, an amount of money or some other figure. Here’s a round-up of the most interesting statistics to appear in the past week’s stories.

Monday

13

That’s how many Swiss were trapped on the Rinjani volcano on the Indonesian island of Lombok, when a 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck. Within a day, rescue services were able to evacuate the hundreds of tourists stuck on the volcano. 

Tuesday

4

Four-legged creatures got some help from the Swiss police when the force in Zurich launched a campaign to encourage dog owners to either carry their pet or make them wear booties to protect their paws from the hot asphalt. The Hot Dog campaign is in response to this summer’s soaring temperatures.

Wednesday

1

August 1 is Swiss National Day, a public holiday when people gather to barbecue, listen to politicians’ speeches and watch fireworks. However, this year, due to the hot, dry weather, firework displays were banned in much of the country.

Thursday

4

That was the number of cyclists, including a Swiss, who were killed in a terrorist attack in Tajikistan last Sunday. On Thursday, the Swiss Office of the Attorney General opened a criminal case against persons unknown on suspicion of murder, severe personal injury, membership or support of a criminal organisation. 

Friday

20

The head of Baselworld, René Kamm, had served the world’s largest watch and jewellery trade show for nearly 20 years when he announced his resignation on Friday. The fair’s 2018 edition saw the number of exhibitors drop by 50% and this week, the largest exhibitor, the Swatch Group, said it would not take part in 2019.