Unseasonably early snowfall restricted traffic in south Iceland on Saturday, since motorists had not yet prepared their vehicles for the winter with studded tires, designed to drive on slippery roads.

According to information from the Iceland Meteorological Office, the blanket of snow measured five centimeters in Kirkjubaejarklaustur on Saturday morning, Morgunbladid reports.

Such an early snowfall has not occurred in Iceland since 1990, when ten centimeters fell in south Iceland on September 20.

A low pressure system which came closer to Iceland than expected caused the unseasonably cold weather. Southerly winds are forecast to raise the temperatures in the next few days, but later in the week they will drop again.