Swiss perspectives in 10 languages

Wintry weather brings avalanche risk

man with umbrella in the snow
A man stands at the lakeside in Brunnen, central Switzerland on Thursday afternoon © Keystone / Alexandra Wey


Fresh snowfall – two weeks into spring – has been causing traffic disruption in Switzerland and brought warnings of a high avalanche danger for some regions.

Around 1.5 metres of snow has fallen in some parts of the Alps since Wednesday.

External Content

Snowfall has now finished, weather services say, but the country is still dealing with the repercussions. The Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research SLF’s avalanche bulletin for FridayExternal link showed level 4  – the second  highest rating – for a large area that includes Andermatt and Locarno in southeastern and southern Switzerland..

It warned of avalanche risks on steep, north-facing slopes, triggered by the weight burden of fresh snow.

“In addition, as a consequence of solar radiation and rising daytime temperatures, numerous moist avalanches can be expected. In the major areas of precipitation, these could be of great magnitude,” it said.

Skiers should stay on piste, the institute said. 

MeteoSwiss, the national weather service, carried this warning as well, from Thursday afternoon.

External Content

Traffic

Hundreds of vehicles were blocked due to snow on the A2 road, around the Gotthard Tunnel – a major alpine transit route, on Thursday. Work to clear the area went on into Thursday night. Canton Uri police saidExternal link that traffic conditions on the axis roads should get back to normal on Friday. Parts of Ticino, the Bernese Oberland and Valais were also affected.

According to Swiss public television SRFExternal link, some motorists encountered problems because they had already switched to summer tyres, meaning they had no grip on the roads. Locals in the San Bernadino region in Ticino said that such snowfall was not unusual for April.

Before the snow, there was sunny weather – it is also expected on FridayExternal link – and the spring flowers had been starting to bloom and blossom.  In some places, they are now covered in snow.

External Content

Popular Stories

Most Discussed

News

Trump names Callista Gingrich ambassador to Switzerland

More

Trump picks Callista Gingrich as ambassador to Switzerland

This content was published on Incoming United States president Donald Trump has named Callista Gingrich as the next ambassador to Switzerland. Gingrich was posted to the Vatican under Trump's previous term.

Read more: Trump picks Callista Gingrich as ambassador to Switzerland

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative

You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!

If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR