Six districts in mainland Portugal are on orange warning and four on yellow warning for snowfall until Sunday morning, which could condition and close roads, reported the Portuguese Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA). The districts of Guarda, Castelo Branco, Vila Real, Viana do Castelo, Braga and Viseu are under orange warning, the second most serious warning on the IPMA scale, today and Sunday.
The forecast for Guarda and Castelo Branco is valid for the period between 15:00 and 09:00 on Sunday. For Vila Real, Viana do Castelo and Braga, it applies to the time band from 18:00 today to 09:00 next. For Viseu, it refers to the period between 9pm today and 9am on Sunday.
The yellow warning, the third highest on the IPMA scale, covers the districts of Porto, Bragança, Aveiro and Coimbra. For Porto and Bragança, the forecast concerns the period from 18:00: today to 09:00 on Sunday. For Aveiro and Coimbra, from 9pm today and 9am on Sunday.
For all these districts, whether those with orange warning or yellow warning, IPMA states that snowfall with accumulation and possible ice formation can cause disruptionsuch as “conditioned or closed roads, damage to structures or trees, impaired local supplies”, according to a statement from the meteorological institute.
For Monday, December 22, the IPMA issued a yellow warning for snowfall in six districts – Braga, Bragança, Vila Real and Viana do Castelo (between 06:00 and 12:00), and Guarda and Castelo Branco (between 12:00 and 18:00).
Winter starts on Sundaywith rain, snowfall and maximum temperatures expected to vary between 4 and 14 degrees Celsius, according to IPMA. PContinental Portugal will be affected this weekend by a maritime polar air mass that will cause snowfall at lower elevations and temperatures close to or below 0 degrees in the North and Center interior.
“There will be favorable conditions for ice formation on roads in the highest regions of the North and Center”says IPMA in a statement published on its website.
The meteorological institute predicts precipitation in the form of snow “above 1400/1600 meters altitude, A sharp drop in elevation is expected from the late afternoon of Saturday, the 20th, to 800/1000 meters”.
On Sunday, “the elevation will remain low, and may occasionally drop to 600 meters” and snow accumulation “can reach values between 5 and 15 centimeters in several mountains in the North and Center regions, and can exceed 20 to 30 centimeters in the highest points of the mountainsfor example Serra da Estrela, Gerês, Larouco, Alvão/Marão and Montemuro”.