Utoya

Utøya,ˈʉːtœʏɑ, is an island in the Tyrifjorden lake in Hole municipality, in the county of Buskerud, Norway. The island is 10.6 hectares (26 acres), situated 500 metres (1,600 ft) off the shore, by the E16 road, 38 kilometres (24 mi) driving distance north-west of Oslo city centre.

Utøya is owned by the Workers' Youth League (Arbeidernes ungdomsfylking, AUF), the youth wing of the Labour Party, which holds an annual summer camp there. The island was given as a commemorative gift by Oslo Trade Union Confederation on August 28, 1950, but also serves as a camp site for other events, including other organizations' summer camps. The island is operated commercially by Utøya AS.

The island is largely forested, with some open spaces. A small pier on the east side of the island is used to ferry people to and from the mainland. There are also permanent buildings. Hovedhuset ("The Main House"), Stabburet ("The Hórreo"), and Låven ("The Barn") are located together near the dock. Up on the hillside (LO-toppen) are the main campgrounds, the cafeteria building, and the sanitary building. Skolestua The school house is located further south.

Name

The first element is ut 'out, outermost'; the last element is the finite form of øy, 'island'. Utøya is the southernmost island in the lake of Tyrifjorden.

2011 shooting

On 22 July 2011, a mass shooting took place at the AUF's summer camp, where 650 young people were staying. A man dressed as a police officer, identified by Norwegian media as Anders Behring Breivik, arrived on Utøya, telling those on the island that he was there for security reasons following the explosions in Oslo which took place a few hours before. He then began shooting at individuals, continuing until the police arrived one hour after the first alarm call. Breivik immediately surrendered. Combined, the attacks in Oslo and Utøya left 76 dead, with 68 killed on the island.