Winter chill brings early snow to Swiss mountains

A thin layer of fresh snow covers the table of a mountain restaurant at 1,500m in eastern Switzerland following a cold snap. Keystone/Gian Ehrenzeller

Cold winds and a sharp drop in temperatures have brought the first signs of winter to the Swiss Alps and to neighbouring Austria.

Some mountain regions in south-eastern and south-western regions of Switzerland recorded about 25 centimetres of fresh snow on Saturday, according to the weather serviceExternal link of the SRF public broadcasting company.

Authorities were out in force across mountainous regions to clear roads blocked by snow and ice.

Meteorologists expect 50cm of snow at the altitude of 2,000 metres above sea level and temperatures in some lower-lying regions dropping below zero degrees Celsius.

The “first polar invasion of the season”, as experts describe the cold weather, is a drastic change from just a week ago, when temperatures were above 20°C.

However, Switzerland may still have its traditional ‘Indian summer’ in lower-lying regions over the next weeks once the cold snap is over, according to the weather service.