Saxeten
Saxeten | |
|---|---|
 Coat of arms | |
Location of Saxeten  | |
| Country | Switzerland |
| Canton | Bern |
| District | Interlaken-Oberhasli |
| Area | |
| • Total | 19.02 km2 (7.34 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 1,103 m (3,619 ft) |
| Population (31 December 2018)[2] | |
| • Total | 99 |
| • Density | 5.2/km2 (13/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (Central European Time) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (Central European Summer Time) |
| Postal code(s) | 3813 |
| SFOS number | 0591 |
| ISO 3166 code | CH-BE |
| Surrounded by | Aeschi bei Spiez, Därligen, Lauterbrunnen, Leissigen, Wilderswil |
| Website | www SFSO statistics |
Saxeten is a municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.
In 1999 it was the site of an incident where 21 tourists and local canyon guides were killed in a flash flood in Saxetenbach canyon.
History
Saxeten is first mentioned in 1303 as Sachsaton.[3]
Origin of the name
The name Saxeten probably goes back to the Latin form "saxata" (rocky point).
Geography
Saxeten has an area of 19.2 km2 (7.4 sq mi). Of this area, 41.9% is used for agricultural purposes, while 30.4% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 1% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (26.7%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).[4]
It is located near the center of the Bödeli watershed.
The Saxetenbach flows through Saxeten, before it joins the Lütschine in Wilderswil.
Demographics
Saxeten has a population (as of 31 December 2020) of 92.[5] As of 2007[update], 1.9% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has decreased at a rate of -21.7%. Nearly all of the population (as of 2000[update]) speaks German (99.2%), with a small minority speaking other languages which were not recorded in the census.
In the 2007 election the most popular party was the SVP which received 57% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS (13.7%), the local small left-wing parties (8.5%) and the Green Party (7%).
The age distribution of the population (as of 2000[update]) is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 34.4% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 48.4% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 17.2%. In Saxeten about 54.4% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule).
Saxeten has an unemployment rate of 1.84%. As of 2005[update], there were 26 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 12 businesses involved in this sector. 1 person is employed in the secondary sector and there is 1 business in this sector. 8 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 2 businesses in this sector.[4] The historical population is given in the following table:[3]
| year | population |
|---|---|
| 1764 | 56 |
| 1850 | 120 |
| 1900 | 170 |
| 1950 | 112 |
| 2000 | 128 |
Transportation
Saxeten is the starting point of a number of routes: the Suls-Lobhorn-Hütte, over the Rengglipass to Aeschiried, and through Wilderswil to the Schynige Platte.
Saxetenbach Disaster
On July 27, 1999, there was an accident in the Saxetenbach canyon, just above the village of Saxeten, in which 21 young people from Australia, New Zealand, England, South Africa, and Switzerland died.
48 people from 2 coach tour parties had opted to do a side activity of canyoning where you float, swim and climb through an area, such as a gorge. It was organised by Adventure World, a now defunct company who were located in Wilderswil, not far from Saxeten.
At 6pm, flash floods began pouring through the gorge and 21 people within the group were swept to their deaths. 18 were tourists and 3 were canyon guides. By 7pm, the stories had hit the world's news screens, and the hotels people were staying in were bombarded with phone calls, but the staff only saw what was on television.[6]
The survivors were rescued and then questioned by Swiss Polizei before being released and returned to their hotel at 1am the next morning. Until then they had no idea how many people had died nor the enormity of the disaster.[6]
Identifying the dead bodies was a serious problem for the Swiss authorities, the bodies were badly traumatised. 11 survivors opted to go and identify the dead at the mortuary, but many had to be identified through DNA and dental analysis.[6][7]
Families were desperate to see for themselves what had happened, and Swissair along with Swiss medical services provided meet & greet sessions for families, and also much counselling for those who had been present.[6]
Bodies of the dead washed up in Lake Brienz, a popular boating lake during peak Summer tourist season.
Since the incident, there has been much rumour released into the press about what happened. Emergency services claim they sent someone to tell the group of the impending storms, and families of the dead claim that the company should have seen the signs of the weather. Swiss authorities were quick to blame profit making and general negligence as the cause of the accident.[8]
Some years on, Adventure World have gone out of business their former premises by Wilderswil Station are now occupied by a Bank. 8 former employees of the firm have been charged with manslaughter.[9]
References
- ^ a b "Arealstatistik Standard - Gemeinden nach 4 Hauptbereichen". Federal Statistical Office. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
- ^ "Ständige Wohnbevölkerung nach Staatsangehörigkeitskategorie Geschlecht und Gemeinde; Provisorische Jahresergebnisse; 2018". Federal Statistical Office. 9 April 2019. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
- ^ a b Saxeten in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.
- ^ a b Swiss Federal Statistical Office accessed 01-Jul-2009
- ^ "Ständige und nichtständige Wohnbevölkerung nach institutionellen Gliederungen, Geburtsort und Staatsangehörigkeit". bfs.admin.ch (in German). Swiss Federal Statistical Office - STAT-TAB. 31 December 2020. Retrieved 21 September 2021.
- ^ a b c d Case Study
- ^ Victims battered beyond recognition
- ^ Profit drive blamed for disaster
- ^ Eight to be charged
External links
