LATEST: On Wednesday morning, Gimsøybrua, Kåkernbrua and Raftsundbrua in Lofoten and Vesterålen are closed due to very strong winds. – Right now it’s blowing 39.6 m/s on the Raftsund Bridge, says the meteorologist on duty to Lofotposten a little before six thirty. Wind strength above 32.6 meters per second is considered hurricane force. Posten has also stopped delivery of mail in Vestvågøy, Flakstad and Moskenes. The same applies to Laukvik and Gimsøya in Vågan, with the caveat that several routes may also be affected. This is what press manager Kenneth Pettersen says in Posten to news. – Safety comes first and we make ongoing assessments. On the E10 from Tjeldsund and down Lofoten, towards Moskenes, there are several bridges that may be closed for periods. These are automated bridges that close when the wind gets too strong. There are also traffic guards at some of them. Outside Harstad, the Sandsøybrua is occasionally closed due to strong winds. Also further south along the coast, the weather will start to show in earnest on Wednesday morning. On the E39 in Ørsta, the trailer of a truck train has blown off the road. The police and fire service have now arrived at the scene and are trying to get the trailer connected again. The road is now closed in both directions. Skram school in Måløy will be closed for those who have to cross the Måkøy Bridge. Photo: Eivind Ola Masdal Car, boat and air traffic affected The Swedish Road Administration has deployed traffic guards at the Tjeldsund Bridge and the Raftsund Bridge to ensure that possible traffic over them runs safely. Just before 07.00, traffic operator Siril Veiåker Nilsen says that the Tjeldsunsbrua is closed, but that it has been possible to pass on yellow lights earlier. She says that there are not that many closures in Troms and Finnmark, but that there are closures over Ifjordfjellet and Snefjord-Havøysund, where the road is closed due to avalanches. – Otherwise, it is quite a slippery road and it is also this wind that will be unpredictable today, says Veiåker Nilsen. Canceled ferry calls Nordland: Bodø – Moskenes Bodø – Værøy – Røst – Moskenes Bognes – Lødingen Bognes – Skarberget Fiskebøl – Melbu Nordnesøy – Kilboghamn Nesnaøyene Svolvær – Skrova Troms: Hansnes–Karlsøy–Vannøy Sørrollnes Botnhamn – Brensholmen Breivikeidet – Svendsby Refsnes – Flesnes Updated at 07 :53 At 07.15 the Road Administration also reports that the E6 over Sennalandet is closed due to the storm. New assessment at 12.00 at the earliest. There has been an avalanche/slush avalanche across the Fv889 Snefjord – Havøysund in Finnmark. The road is closed and will be due to the risk of new landslides. On Magerøya, E69 between Skarsvåg and Nordkapp is closed, as well as Gjesværveien. In addition, two flights to Bodø from Harstad/Narvik and Andenes have been cancelled. Several ferry departures have also been cancelled, and certain stretches of road have been closed as a result of the storm. Hurtigruten MS Nord-Norge is also canceling all calls between Hammerfest and Kirkenes from Tuesday to Thursday. The express boats Nordlandsekspressen and Helgelandspendelen have also been cancelled. The Helgelandsbrua showed a wind force of 25 m/s on Wednesday morning, but the bridge is currently open to traffic. Photo: Norwegian Public Roads Administration Very strong gusts are expected The Norwegian Meteorological Institute has sent out a number of danger warnings. A lot of rain and very strong gusts of wind are expected in parts of Nordland and Troms. Most exposed are Lofoten and Vesterålen. – There are very strong gusts of wind expected at 33-38 meters per second. In such weather there is a danger of trees falling over. In addition, Lofoten is relatively exposed to high waves. These can hit land hard. This is what state meteorologist Trond Lien says to news. He encourages people not to travel outside unnecessarily. Several cargo ships are said to have sought an emergency port, and waves of up to 25 meters high are expected. Weather forecast for Northern Norway Wednesday Nordland Minking to south-west small to stiff gales, possibly strong gales on the coast in the south. Transition to sleet and snow showers. Thursday afternoon turn to north-westerly slight gale, first in northern parts. Still sleet and snow showers. Troms South-west strong gale in exposed places, decreasing to a slight gale, but on Thursday afternoon intermittent strong south-westerly gale on the coast of North Troms. Transition to sleet and snow showers. Late Thursday afternoon turn to northwest light gale. Still sleet and snow showers. Finnmark Southerly slight gale, Thursday morning increasing to southwesterly strong gale on the coast. Sleet and snow, mainly in the west. Thursday afternoon turning to a westerly light gale, first in the west. Sleet and snow showers in the west, otherwise mostly staying weather. This is reported by the Meteorological Institute on Wednesday morning. The meteorologist asks people to secure loose objects and to be observant. – Corrugated tin plates can typically come loose and it can be scary. An orange warning for precipitation has been issued. It can reach 40–60 mm in 12 hours and 60–80 mm in 24 hours. Photo: Meteorological Institute Great avalanche danger On Wednesday, the avalanche warning warns of danger level four for Tromsø and Lyngen, while in most other regions in Troms and Finnmark it is danger level three. – Danger level four means that there is a risk that relatively large landslides could break loose on their own. Even if you are not skiing, the avalanches can potentially reach down the road or buildings, says Håvard Toft, head of the avalanche warning. He says that when there is such a high risk of avalanches that Toft recommends that people not stay in avalanche terrain at all. Recommends people to take it easy. There are several storm centers in the north of the Atlantic Ocean that create challenging weather conditions in northern Norway, with both locally large amounts of precipitation and strong gusts of wind. Most exposed are Lofoten and Vesterålen. Asgeir Jordbru is county emergency manager in Nordland. He advises people to take it easy. – It’s really a day to stay at home as much as possible and not go out and drive. It is a good idea to secure items. It is good to make an extra check that nothing is loose. In that case, there is a big chance that it will blow away. County emergency manager Asgeir Jordbru. Photo: Kåre Riibe Ramskjell / news And if you have to go out, he asks people to check the weather. – Strong winds have been reported so that roads and bridges will be closed as there will be a danger of trees falling over the road. A lot of rainfall has also been reported, so there may be a lot of water in the roadway as well. Schools close Yesterday, a number of vehicles were blown off the road in northern Norway, while strong winds and heavy rainfall closed a number of ferry connections. Widerøe also canceled several of its departures in the north. And the worst weather doesn’t arrive until today. Danger warnings Very heavy rain An orange warning of very heavy rain has been sent for Lofoten, Vesterålen and parts of Sør-Troms. Between 40-60 millimeters of rain is expected in 12 hours, from Wednesday morning to Thursday night. In addition, 60-80 millimeters can fall in a day. The precipitation decreases overnight to Thursday. Very strong gusts of wind An orange danger warning has also been sent for very strong gusts of wind for Lofoten, Vesterålen and parts of Troms from the night of Wednesday until late Wednesday evening. Here, very strong gusts of wind between 33-38 m/s are expected from the south and southwest. Medium winds are expected to be full, and strong storms may occur. In addition, there are yellow danger warnings for gusts of wind for large parts of northern Norway. Locally strong gusts of between 27-33 m/s are expected here. Lofoten, Vesterålen and the coastal areas in Troms will particularly notice the weather, says the meteorologist. Among other things, a number of ferries are canceled here. The storm has also caused municipalities in Lofoten to take action. In exposed areas, the wind gusts can reach over 35 meters per second. Photo: Meteorological Institute The school shuttle throughout Lofoten has been cancelled. This has led to absences not being recorded at the schools in Vågan municipality. At the same time, Flakstad primary and secondary school has chosen to close due to the storm. – The buses are not running, bridges are closed and it is simply for the safety of the students, says the principal of the school, Britt Rasmussen. In Vestvågøy, too, all schools, kindergartens and after-school centers are closed.
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The storm stops ferry traffic and schools are closed – news Nordland
