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Snowflake Cold

World Snow Wrap February 5: Powder days continue in Japan - Metres of snow in California - Fresh snow in British Columbia - Snow and avalanches in Europe

Reggae Elliss
Mountain Watch
Fri, 05 Feb 2021 13:09 UTC
Kirkwood’s ski patrol doing their
© Kirkwood resortKirkwood’s ski patrol doing their bit to get the show on the road last Friday.
It has been a big couple of weeks in the Northern Hemisphere with five-day snow totals of 1.5 to two metres in California, deep snow and avalanches in locked-down Europe and a run of excellent powder days in Japan. Read on for the details.

Japan

It has been a big fortnight in Japan although a couple of mild days earlier in the week brought some rain to Niseko, but that changed mid-week when a colder front hit on Tuesday night and there's been 80cms in the past three days. Conditions were tough with blizzard conditions at times and some wind-hold, and according to our snow Niseko snow reporter Henry Johnston, the storm is still in "full swing" today and it's awesome out there - just check the above photo from today.

It has been a similar story in Furano with over a metre of snow since Jan 30 and from Lucy Morrell's report, it sounded like yesterday was the day: "Basically half a metre of fresh up top at Furano today and hardly a soul to share it with. Crazy days."
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Snowflake Cold

Farmers plough over 6 foot of snow as 'Beast from the East 2' wreaks havoc across Scotland

Ryan Carroll
Daily Record
Sun, 07 Feb 2021 12:39 UTC
Farmers plough over six foot of snow in Aberdeen
© Ramage ContractorsFarmers plough over six foot of snow in Aberdeenshire
Ramage Contractors headed out in tractors to clear the roads following blizzards in Aberdeenshire.

Farmers have taken to the streets to plough over six foot of snow as the 'Beast from the East 2' continues to wreak havoc across Scotland.

Ramage Contractors headed out in tractors to clear the roads following blizzards in Aberdeenshire.

Dramatic footage shows workers from the family run firm driving through the white stuff at Cabrach in Moray yesterday.

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Arrow Down

'A terrible tragedy': 4 skiers killed, 4 injured in Utah avalanche, officials say


AZ Central
Sun, 07 Feb 2021 14:09 UTC
AVALANCHE
An avalanche killed four skiers and injured four others Saturday in a popular recreation area, making it one of the deadliest avalanches in Utah history, authorities said.

The Unified Police Department told local media that it was alerted to the avalanche about 11:40 a.m. after receiving a faint distress call from an avalanche beacon in Millcreek Canyon near Salt Lake City.

The skier-triggered avalanche swept up eight people in their early twenties to late thirties who were in two groups touring the backcountry, Unified Police Sgt. Melody Cutler told the Salt Lake Tribune. The avalanche took place at an elevation of 9,800 feet, the Utah Avalanche Center said.


Comment: In addition recently: Avalanches leave 9 people dead in past week across U.S.

Here is footage of the avalanche, apparently taken by one of those caught in it - and who we hope survived it.

Warning: Some viewers may find this video distressing



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Snowflake Cold

Germany brought to a standstill after massive snowstorm, sub-zero temperatures


Euronews
Sun, 07 Feb 2021 13:39 UTC
A Deutsche Bahn employee clears snow on
© Peter GerckeA Deutsche Bahn employee clears snow on a platform at the main station in Magdeburg, Germany, Sunday, Feb. 7, 2021.
A snowstorm and strong winds pounded northern and western Germany on Sunday, forcing trains to cancel trips and leading to hundreds of road accidents. Police said 28 people were injured on icy roads.

The German Weather Service DWD urged people to stay at home and authorities brought homeless people into warm shelters amid the sub-zero temperatures.

National train operator Deutsche Bahn said main train routes between Hamburg and Hannover, Berlin and the west were canceled as snowdrifts piled up on the tracks and power lines. Some train connections in the east were also canceled, though most of the snow came down in the northwest.


12 inches of snow

Police in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia said early Sunday they had counted 222 accidents due to the bad weather conditions since Saturday afternoon. They said two people among the 28 were severely injured.
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Snowflake Cold

Winter Snow Darcy batters the Netherlands, disrupting rail and road traffic


DutchNews
Sun, 07 Feb 2021 13:09 UTC
Snow ploughs in action on the A1 motorway on
© Vincent Jannink ANPSnow ploughs in action on the A1 motorway on Sunday morning.
The Netherlands woke up to wintry scenes on Sunday, with a layer of snow covering most of the country apart from the far south and north.

The snow and strong winds are expected to continue for most of the day, but it could be well into evening before it stops in the north, weather forecasters say.

The transport ministry's roads authority has sprayed 17 million kilos of salt on the roads since Saturday evening in an effort to keep them clear. Nevertheless, there have been a string of accidents due to the difficult conditions and the slip road between the A15 and the A4 was closed for a time after a lorry jack-knifed.

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Snowflake Cold

Most snow for over a decade at closed Scottish ski centres

Patrick Thorne
Inthesnow.com
Sat, 06 Feb 2021 12:17 UTC
snow
Scotland's sensational winter for snowfall is continuing, with what is now, after nearly two months of largely sub-zero temperatures, one of the longest spells of cold snowy weather this century.

Many are comparing this winter to the 'big freeze' of 2010, but there seems to be more snowfall so far than that famously cold, but rather dry winter.

The country's five commercial ski centres are all currently closed as part of the Scottish lockdown and that currently looks set to be the case for the rest of February at least.

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Snowflake Cold

Snowfall in Shimla, India highest in the last 30 years - nearly 2 feet of snow in a day


The Indian Express
Sat, 06 Feb 2021 14:23 UTC
snow
Following snow and rain in most parts of Himachal Pradesh, the weather largely cleared up in the state on Friday and is expected to remain dry over the next week, meteorological officials said.

Snowfall in Shimla was the highest in the last 30 years, the meteorological centre said.

Heavy snowfall, however, has led to the disruption of transport and power supply in parts of the state, especially Shimla district. Kufri and Shimla received nearly two feet of snow on Thursday while Shillaro and Khadrala received 55 and 49 cm each.

PWD officials said that three national highways, one state highway and 461 link roads in the state are currently blocked with snow. The primary roads of Shimla, including the circular road and the bypass road, were cleared of snow on Friday, but authorities have warned motorists to drive with precautions due to a layer of black ice on the road, which is slippery and accident-prone.

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Snowflake

Snowed in! Family opens front door to discover 9 foot wall of snow in Glenrinnes, Scotland

Chris MacLennan
The Press and Journal
Fri, 05 Feb 2021 13:10 UTC
The snow wall that greets the Robertson Family
© Laurie RobertsonThe snow wall that greets the Robertson Family
Usually, it's the neighbours that come knocking, however, a huge snow wall has formed outside the front door of this Moray family's home - completely blocking access.

The Robertsons from Glenrinnes have watched as snow crept closer towards their home over the last few days.

And now, after several heavy drifts, the family are now unable to use their front door.

Mum Laurie Robertson took to social media to share images of the entrance to her house completely blocked.

Mrs Robertson said: "We are up one of the back roads so if there is snow, more often than not its drifts if there is any wind.

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Arrow Down

Avalanches leave 9 people dead in past week across U.S.

Jan Wesner Childs
The Weather Channel
Fri, 05 Feb 2021 12:25 UTC
Searchers dig a tunnel into 20 feet of snow that buried three victims after an avalanche in San Juan County, Colorado, on Monday, Feb. 1, 2021.
© (San Juan County Office of Emergency ManagementSearchers dig a tunnel into 20 feet of snow that buried three victims after an avalanche in San Juan County, Colorado, on Monday, Feb. 1, 2021.
Nine people are dead after avalanches in four different states in the past week, highlighting the danger that comes during the peak of avalanche season and winter weather.

The latest incident happened Thursday in Colorado, where a backcountry skier was caught up in a slide near Vail.

Avalanches also killed three hikers Tuesday in Alaska, one skier Jan. 29 in Utah, three Monday in Colorado and one Tuesday in New Hampshire.

Ethan Greene, director of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center, said such incidents aren't out of the ordinary for this time of year but recent days have been especially lethal.

"What I think is less usual is the number of fatalities in a short period of time," Greene told weather.com Thursday.
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Eye 2

A sign of the coming times? Snowy owl seen in Central Park, New York after 130 years, a rare spotting of an 'unpredictable' Arctic bird

Ryan W. Miller
USA Today
Wed, 03 Feb 2021 19:29 UTC
A snowy owl was seen in Central Park in New York City on Jan. 27, 2021.
© REBECCA DEPORTEA snowy owl was seen in Central Park in New York City on Jan. 27, 2021.
Becky DePorte was about 45 minutes outside the city when she got the text from a friend last Wednesday: A snowy owl was in Central Park.

DePorte - an avid bird-watcher - was then unaware a sighting of the owl hadn't been reported in Central Park in 130 years. At the time, she was in Rockefeller State Park Preserve with a friend who was looking for a pileated woodpecker, a bird she had seen plenty of times growing up in rural Pennsylvania.

"I really didn't care about a pileated woodpecker," she said. So she hopped in an Uber, and "$60 and 45 minutes later, I was back in Central Park running to the ballfield with my camera."

"I was so happy" as she snapped photos of the bird, DePorte added. "It was the best, most unusual spotting I had had."


Comment: Read also: Historic Arctic blasts are about to engulf North America, Europe and Asia simultaneously: Grand Solar Minimum

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