Problems expected due to fresh snow

Weather warning from GeoSphere Austria: From Thursday to Friday lunchtime, it will snow across most of Austria. Delays on roads, railways and in air traffic are possible, as are power cuts.

A low-pressure system over northern Italy is bringing moist air to Austria, and widespread snowfall will begin on Thursday. Rain is also possible at times in low-lying areas.

‘By Friday night at the latest, it will be snowing everywhere, even at low altitudes, with heavy snowfall at times, and the focus of the snowfall will gradually shift to the eastern half of Austria – from the Vienna area to Burgenland, southern Styria and Lower Carinthia,’ says meteorologist Lukas Bodinger from GeoSphere Austria. ‘Most of Austria will see 10 to 20 centimetres of fresh snow by Friday morning, with isolated areas seeing even more.’

The fresh snow may cause delays on roads and in train and air traffic. Major routes such as the Südautobahn motorway may also be affected, especially in the higher sections, such as at the Wechsel and on the Pack.

In addition, trees may fall under the weight of the snow and damage power lines.

On Friday, snowfall will subside by the afternoon at the latest and conditions on the roads should ease everywhere.

However, the avalanche risk will remain high throughout the mountainous regions over the next few days, with most areas experiencing considerable to high risk.

Saturday will start with severe frost, particularly in the east and south.

However, mild air will soon prevail throughout Austria. Afternoon temperatures on Saturday will range between 2 and 10 degrees and on Sunday between 4 and 14 degrees. It will be warmest in the west. The weather will be very changeable over the weekend, with clouds, some sun and occasional rain or snowfall. The snow line will rise to 1200 to 2000 metres.

Current forecasts for the coming week predict maximum temperatures above 10 degrees in most of Austria.

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)