Snowfall causing problems for motorists in central Finland
On Monday morning the Finnish Meteorological Institute reported a dusting of snow cover at its Tikkakoski weather station in Jyväskylä, central Finland. By the next morning however, the reading was 18cm of snow cover at the same location.
The heaviest snowfall was early Monday evening, over 4mm of precipitation an hour. A general meteorology rule of thumb is that one millimetre of measured precipitation equals one centimetre of snow.
Road conditions in the region are expected to remain hazardous until at least early evening on Tuesday. One person died Tuesday morning in a collision between a car and a delivery lorry in Jyväskylä.
An air dome at Jyväskylä’s Vehkalampi sports venue was taken down when the weight of snow began to raise safety concerns.
“This is the first time we’ve had to do this. These conditions are impossible. Of course we’re not open,” commented Jarmo Korhonen who supervises the facility for the city of Jyväskylä.
There have been rolling power outages caused by wet snow downing trees and power lines. Starting in the southwest of the country and moving eastwards, at their peak Tuesday morning, the power cuts left around 8,000 households without electricity.
According to the current forecast, lighter snowfall is expected to continue in central regions. Road clearing crews and equipment are out in full force.
In the Pirkanmaa region, heavy vehicles met with problems, getting stuck in snow and slush at crossroads and on ramps, especially on highway 3 north of Tampere, in southern Finland.
Around 20cm of new snowfall was recorded in the region overnight causing power outages, with the municipalities of Ylöjärvi, Ikaalinen ja Ruovesi most affected.
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: City in northwestern Canada grapples with impacts of record warm weather, CBC News
Finland: Finnish climate heating up: report, Yle News
Norway: Temperatures on Svalbard have been above normal for 100 straight months, The Independent Barents Observer
Russia: Warmest winter ever on the Northern Sea Route, The Independent Barents Observer
Sweden: Groundwater levels unusually low in Sweden despite melting snow, Radio Sweden
United States: 2018 was the 4th-warmest year on record, NOAA and NASA reveal, CBC News
