Blizzard

Get ready for a wintry weekend as Bulgaria braces for a cold snap accompanied by moderate to strong northeasterly winds and widespread snowfall. The forecast for January 20 paints a picture of overcast skies with snowfall across the country, turning to rain in the eastern parts before noon. Snow cover is expected to reach up to 10 cm thickness, rising to 30 cm in the Rhodopes and Rila.

Turkish authorities have fined a company that operates the Northern Marmara Highway, where hundreds of vehicles were stranded for long hours during the massive snowstorm last week.

The sun shone down on much of the East Coast on Sunday, a day after a vicious nor'easter brought blizzard conditions to many areas, and left more than 100,000 customers without power for a stretch that could last into Monday.

Turkey is finally under a cold spell as warned by meteorological authorities, with heavy snowfall and blizzards moving across the country, causing travel disruptions, while also serving as an opportunity for children to enjoy their winter break making snowman.

The National Meteorological Administration (ANM) on Wednesday issued a series of Code Yellow and Code Orange alerts of snowfall and blizzard in the mountainous and sub-mountainous areas, respectively a bad weather information targeting the entire country, which will take effect on Thursday morning.

On 26 January, the atmospheric pressure will rise slightly during the day, but will remain significantly lower than the average for the month.

It will be cloudy and windy today. It will be raining, in the Pre-Balkans and the high fields of Western Bulgaria snowing, but with the temperature drop by the end of the day and overnight, the rain throughout the country will turn to snow. Significant snowfall expected in the Rhodope Mountains, on Wednesday night in the Pre-Balkans and northeastern Bulgaria, as well.

Heavy snowfall and gale-force winds shut down the popular ski resort of Vora-Kaimaktsalan in Pella, northern Greece, on Tuesday.

Resort manager Panos Panagiotopoulos told the Athens-Macedonian News Agency that a fierce blizzard kicked up in the area in the early hours of Tuesday, making conditions hazardous at the popular winter destination.

The National Meteorological Administration (ANM) updated on Monday the Code Yellow advisory of blizzard issued on Sunday and extended the number of counties to be affected by the bad weather to 27 from 12.

Moreover, the advisory for mixed precipitations and wind valid for the rest of the country was extended until Wednesday evening at 20:00hrs.