In several countries in central Europe there is a severe weather situation with red warnings during the weekend.
The amount of rain in some areas is expected to be as large as the volume for an entire six months in Sweden – some places have even received the season’s first snowfall.
– It is not possible to warn more than what they are doing, says TV4’s meteorologist Ulrika Elvgren.
A stagnant and heavy rainstorm hits central Europe during the weekend. Already during Friday and the night of Saturday, there has been extreme amounts of rain.
Among other things, Slovenia has already been affected by floods. Pictures from Thursday show how a river near Neblo quickly flooded in a few hours, until the water level rose enough to cover an entire bridge.
At the same time, several countries are preparing for a worse situation on Saturday and Sunday.
– It is a serious weather situation for Europe. It is not possible to have more warnings than they do, says meteorologist Ulrika Elvgren.
As much rain as during a Swedish six months
Red warnings apply to several countries. The rain is pouring down, all the way from southern Poland to northern Italy.
In the Czech Republic, just over the weekend, as much rain is expected to fall as it does during a normal six months in Sweden, according to TV4’s meteorologist.
– It will rain more or less all weekend. And snowing in some parts. There are warnings of serious consequences.
Therefore, in the last few days, the emergency services in the Czech Republic have been preparing by building barriers along rivers throughout the country. In the capital Prague, a machine was used that filled around 600 sandbags per hour, which should be able to be used if the floods come, according to Reuters.
Large amounts of snow
In the heights of the Alps, large amounts of snow will fall.
– It can snow a lot in the coming days. It could be about half a meter of snow over the weekend. It is a remarkable amount for being so early in the season, says Elvgren.
The first snowfall of the season reached the southwestern Swiss town of Les Diablerets on Friday. The snow covered trees and fields and in the Col du Pillon mountain pass cows could be seen walking around in the white pastures.
In Slovenia, the temperature has generally dropped by around 15 degrees and some places in the northern parts of the country have also received a lot of snow, states ENEX.