Major blizzard reaches western coastal areas of Finland

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The first major blizzard of the current winter has reached Western Finland.
      The snowfall started along the shoreline from Vaasa to Hankoniemi between 8:00 and 9:00 in the morning, reported Jouko Korhonen, the meteorologist on duty at the Finnish Meteorological Institute.
     
The southerly winds have already risen or will become stronger in most of Finland, while very bad road conditions are expected across the country because of snowfall and gusting winds.
      In the Northern Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Bothnia the gusts have already reached a speed of 20 metres per second.
      On the outer island of Utö in Korpo (Korppoo in Finnish) the gusts of wind were even stronger, blowing at a speed of 20 to 25 metres per second already before 10:00 this morning.
      The areas along the coast from Kokkola to Helsinki have been getting snowfalls from around noon onwards.
     
In the Turku-Tampere-Helsinki triangle, the blizzard is forecast to be at its worst during the afternoon rush hours.
      The strongest precipitation will fall in the form of snow which may eventually turn wetter as the temperature moves above freezing.
     
In the evening, snowfall is forecast for Eastern Finland, the regions of Kainuu and Koillismaa.
      In Lapland and around Oulu, and in Savo and Karelia the precipitation will fall in the form of snow.
     
This time the low pressure arrived in Finland from Central Sweden, where it was still snowing in the morning, while the weather had already cleared up in the western parts of the country.
      Drivers are warned to prepare for precarious conditions in the afternoon.


Links:
  Finnish Road Administration: Road weather cameras in Finland
  Finnish Meteorological Institute

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