Mjørkadalur is a valley on the Faroese island of
Streymoy
Streymoy (, ) is the largest and most populated island of the Faroe Islands. The capital, Tórshavn, is located on its southeast coast. The name means "island of currents". It also refers to the largest region of the country that also includes the ...
in the Tórshavnar municipality. It has no postal code. It is located on the mountain of
Sornfelli
Sornfelli is a mountain plateau on the island of Streymoy in the Faroe Islands about 12 km from the capital Tórshavn (20 km by road). It is the site of a military station at 725m above sea level (asl). The Sornfelli Meteorological Stat ...
above the fjord of Kalbaksfjørður. The buildings in Mjørkadalur used to be part of the
Island Command Faroes
Island Command Faroes (; ISCOMFAROES) was the military unit on the Faroe Islands. It was the military command of the Faroe Islands, the Faroe Islands airspace and the Faroe Islands territorial waters. It supported the local government with militar ...
, but now a part of the building is used as a detention centre for prisoners who serve short sentences. Criminals from the Faroe Islands who serve longer sentences are sent to prisons in Denmark, as the detention centre only has room for 12 inmates.
History
It was the site of a Danish military installation (
Island Command Faroes
Island Command Faroes (; ISCOMFAROES) was the military unit on the Faroe Islands. It was the military command of the Faroe Islands, the Faroe Islands airspace and the Faroe Islands territorial waters. It supported the local government with militar ...
) and
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...
early warning radar system until the Danish authorities closed it, and handed the key of the building to the Mayor of Tórshavn on 2 July 2002. The radar continued to work until 1 January 2007. Earlier up to 200 persons from the Danish defense were living in Mjørkadalur. On 15 November 2010 the last equipment was shut down.
Since 10 February 2011 the building in Mjørkadalur has been the only
detention of the Faroe Islands. It used to be in Tórshavn, but due to problems with mold in the building in Tórshavn, the detention was moved to Mjørkadalur.
One of the radars is still operating but it is only watching civilian aircraft traffic in the area.
landsverk.fo - Landið yvirtekur ognirnar í Mjørkadali í næstum (The Faroese government takes over the properties in Mjørkadalur shortly)
/ref>
The name Mjørkadalur
The location is at the head of a valley where the clouds can be seen forming to travel over nearby peaks. ''Mjørki'' means Fog in Faroese and ''Dalur'' means Valley, Foggy Valley.
References
External links
Mjørkadals Idrætsforening
See also
* List of towns in the Faroe Islands
This is a list of villages (and towns) of the Faroe Islands as of 29 of April 2025. :fo:Býir í Føroyum
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:List Of Towns In The Faroe Islands
Towns
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands ( ) (alt. the Faro ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mjorkadalur
Former populated places in the Faroe Islands
Streymoy