Heavy snow in Europe by Elizabeth Saary
Adverse weather has affected the Alpine regions of Europe recently. Heavy snow and torrential rain have led to serious disruption in parts of France, Switzerland and Italy.
As reported yesterday, many homes have been left without power. The number of homes suffering from power failure was at around 78,000 on Monday morning but had been as high as 145,000 through the weekend.
It is not unusual to have snowfall in April in these parts but it is perhaps the sheer amount of snow that has taken some by surprise. This has now led to a heightened risk of avalanches. At low levels heavy rain has caused rivers to burst their banks and there is a continued threat of flooding.
Another part of the world that will be closely watching river levels in the coming few days and weeks is the state of Utah in the USA.
As the weather warms up there is a risk that the huge amount of winter snow stacked up in the mountains will melt very quickly creating more runoff then the rivers can cope with.
The Spring melt is always a worrying time but this year the situation could be particularly bad due to the recent harsh winter. In the mountains, snow has accumulated to as much as 370% of normal levels. That is around thirteen feet or four metres of snow.
In order to try and counteract the problem, local authorities are trying a number of measures to cope with the vast volumes of water when they come. These measures include raising the bed of a state highway and fortifying or re-channelling rivers.
The floodwaters will eventually arrive but hopefully with enough forward planning the worst can be avoided.
|
|
