The large amounts of snow in recent days have led to major challenges in Eastern and Southern Norway. When new amounts of snow arrive on the Norwegian coast, it is Western Norway that gets it. On Thursday, the Meteorological Institute upgraded an already existing yellow warning to orange for parts of Vestland. The warning mainly applies to outer and southern parts of Hordaland from 14:00 on Thursday until 16:00 on Friday. – It just gets worse and worse. This is the first time that we have an orange warning for snow in our area. It is a bit unusual to have so much snow in Bergen, says state meteorologist Leonidas Tsopouridis. A lot of snow is expected for parts of Vestland county. The snow warning has therefore been upgraded to orange in parts of Hordaland. Photo: Meteorological Institute – There have been heavy snowfalls since Tuesday in these areas. That is why we decided to go up to the orange level. Our forecasts suggest that there may be 20–40 cm of snow in the outer and southern parts of old Hordaland, says meteorologist Geir Ottar Fagerlid. Snow is expected this evening and the first part of tomorrow. – It will be extra demanding to travel in traffic tomorrow, says Fagerlid. The amount of snow can affect vulnerable infrastructure, travelers and the power supply, according to the danger warning. The avalanche warning is now sending out an orange danger warning for avalanches in Hardanger. The reason is the large amounts of snow that have fallen in the area combined with the fact that the wind is expected to increase on Friday. – Strong winds will move the snow and blow it into the slopes of Høgfjellet, so that we will have an increase in the avalanche danger, says avalanche forecaster Jostein Aasen. The area for which the warning is issued is from Folgefonn and a little over on the east side of Sørfjorden and down to Røldal. – We are talking about Høgfjellet, above the tree line where the wind picks up a bit. With the wind we are getting now, it is the east-facing mountain sides that are most exposed. Aasen urges people to avoid avalanche terrain. Photo: private Municipality on alert Bergen, Øygarden and Alver municipalities have issued a press release stating that they are on alert and are monitoring the situation closely. – Services that are necessary to safeguard life and health are prioritized, while other assignments may be shortened or cancelled, says Berit Breistein, agency director for home-based services in Bergen municipality. The snowy weather also creates challenges in connection with the delivery of aids to residents. – Completely necessary equipment is given priority. Furthermore, the driving conditions have had consequences for some of the municipality’s activity centres. – We prioritize life and health, and do what we can to keep nurseries, schools and other services open, says mayor of Alver municipality, Sara Hamre Sekkingstad. The mayor encourages those who can to leave their cars, use public transport and allow extra time for work and other necessary appointments. Øygarden municipality is closely monitoring how the weather develops. – We are particularly concerned that everyone gets the necessary home care. It is also nice if relatives are extra attentive to the situation of those who need this service. I encourage people to use home offices if they have the opportunity, says mayor Tom Georg Indrevik in Øygarden. The satellite image shows the background for the orange danger warning, namely heavy snowstorms in the North Sea that are on their way into Western Norway. Photo: METEROLOGICAL INSTITUTE Leave the car parked The Swedish Road Administration asks people to leave the car parked. But for those who absolutely have to drive, the advice is as follows: – Calculate plenty of time, drive as needed and be extra attentive. When stopped, it can quickly get cold. It may be a good idea to bring extra clothes in the car, but remember not to have thick clothes under the seat belt, says Henny-Kristin Asperanden Navarsete in the Norwegian Road Administration in a press release. Although the snow causes a lot of trouble, there are several people who are happy about the crowds that come. In Bergen, Pål Dimmen has invented skiing and walks through the streets of Bergen. He and the dog Cibelius rejoice over all the snow that has come. END UP ON THE SIDEWALK: A car had a problem in the center of Bergen in the morning hours. Photo: Lotte Solheim Johannessen / news Helicopter and train traffic stand still The helicopter that was supposed to go to the North Sea has been affected by the weather. All departures from Flesland have been cancelled. Helicopter traffic in Florø is also affected by cancellations. At Sola, traffic is at a standstill until further notice. Passengers are asked to meet at scheduled travel times, reports heliport.no. Stavanger airport The sun is also a problem. It is snowing well at Stavanger airport on Thursday morning. It is expected that the predicted snow will affect air traffic to both Stavanger and Bergen. Photo: Maja Mathisen / news The roller coaster will be closed for periods of 25–30 minutes at a time this morning to plow away the snow. – For now, this does not create major consequences for flight departures, says Morten Wathne in Avinor to news. According to Wathne, there has not been an abnormal amount of snow, but the snow that is lying still needs to be plowed away. This also applies to Flesland airport in Bergen. The heavy snow may lead to delays, reports Avinor Bergen Airport on its website. – This is how it will be throughout the day, that the runways will be closed in periods of half an hour. But the traffic is flowing, and everyone has to show up as usual, says press officer Cathrine Framholt in Avinor to news. She has not received any reports about special conditions at the other airports that Avinor operates in Western Norway. Out on the vegan road, the drivers have also noticed King Vinter. Two cars have collided at Kvamskogen, but no one is expected to be injured. At Krokeide in Bergen, a car has got stuck. It should be smooth in the city, according to the Traffic Center. Vegtrafikksentralen expects quite a queue for vegans today. Photo: Bergit Sønstebø Svendseid / news In Rogaland, the company Go-Ahead is asking people to postpone traveling with Jærbanen and Sørlandsbanen. The reason is the warning of heavy snow and snow drifts later in the day. From this morning, Go-Ahead also states that they have trouble with one train set and that several departures have been canceled on Thursday morning and early afternoon. May cause delays in Austlandet Traffic in Austlandet is also affected by the weather. The drivers here must be prepared for the fact that the line can change quickly. There is still a lot of snow that needs to be cleared after the last few days, which could lead to delays towards the big cities in the East, the Swedish Traffic Agency informs NTB. In Oslo, work is being done to clean up after the large amounts of snow in recent days. Photo: Hallgeir Braastad / news The Gardermo line was closed between Lillestrøm and Oslo airport due to difficult weather conditions, Bane Nor informs. At 07.00 the traffic was moving again. Train traffic on Asker-Lillestrøm, which is one of the busiest lines through Oslo, is also affected, but with less problems than yesterday. Holmenkollbanen in Oslo will be closed for the rest of the day due to large amounts of snow. Alternative transport is being worked on, but the buses are also struggling with the large amounts of snow. Vegtrafikksentralen: Leave the car overnight Thursday was calm without incident, according to Vegtrafikksentralen West. But traffic operator Jan Audun Marøy says that it might be a good idea to leave the car today if you have the opportunity. – I would have done that myself anyway, says Marøy. Plowing crews are working hard to keep the snow away. Here from Førde. Photo: steinar lote / news He urges people to follow the road announcements. – Be prepared that things can take much longer than you think, he says. The Road Traffic Center reports at 11.30 that a number of buses and truck trains have problems on the smooth road. – So far there haven’t been any major incidents, but gradually as more snow comes, there will probably be bigger challenges, says traffic operator Christian Strømmen. On several of the bus lines in the Bergen area, the buses run with chains. It is quite unusual to do, says press contact Karoline Rage to news. The collective company Skyss is preparing for a challenging day. Press contact Øyvind Strømmen asks people to use home offices. It is snowing heavily in Flesland. The runways may be closed throughout the day, the airport warns. Photo: Astrid Rommetveit / news Hello! Do you have any tips or input on this matter? Feel free to send me an email!
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Expect large amounts of snow in Western Norway – upgrading the danger warning – news Vestland
