Winter is returning

Ice Saints Bring Snow and a Plunge in Temperatures

(Bild: Peter Freiberger)

Just in time for the Ice Saints, winter returned to parts of Austria. In Tyrol, for example, it snowed overnight into Tuesday and in some places down into the valleys by mid-morning. On the Arlberg Pass, snow chains were even mandatory for trucks. The ordeal isn’t over yet. Fruit growers—in the Waldviertel and Mühlviertel regions, for instance—are still fearing frost.

Mamertus, Pankratius, Servatius, Bonifatius, and Sophia—the five Ice Saints are once again living up to their name this year. Just in time for Mamertus on Monday, the long-awaited precipitation arrived in Tyrol—initially in the form of rain. In some places, there had been no rain for weeks, and the drought was particularly hard on farmers.

In the Ötztal valley, too, snow fell all the way down into the valley.(Bild: Peter Freiberger)

White peaks and snowflakes all the way down to the valley
With the bad-weather front—which, in this case, has a silver lining—came a sharp drop in temperature. Winter returned overnight into Tuesday, particularly in the mountainous regions. The peaks are white. But snowfall wasn’t limited to higher elevations; it reached all the way down into the valley, with large flakes visible on Tuesday morning in places like Ehenbichl in the Außerfern region (864 meters). Or in Längenfeld in the Ötztal valley (see the video above for both locations).

In some places, winter conditions even returned to the roads. On the Arlberg Pass, the ÖAMTC reported in the early morning and throughout the morning that snow chains were mandatory for vehicles over 3.5 tons. The snowfall has already caused dangerous road conditions in Vorarlberg. Several drivers lost control of their vehicles as a result, and there have already been multiple accidents.

Deep winter on the Arlberg Pass on Tuesday morning.(Bild: Land Tirol (Webcam))

Starry night brings frost in some areas
What does the weather look like for Tuesday (St. Pankratius) in Austria? Initially, it will remain mostly cloudy and rainy. “The focus of precipitation will shift southward, with the snow line dropping below 1,000 meters above sea level in some areas. Gradually, the thick cloud cover will move eastward, and the sun will shine across all of Austria by evening," according to GeoSphere Austria. Overnight, there will still be a few scattered showers here and there on the northern side of the Alps. In some areas, it could become clear and starry.

And that, in turn, does not bode well for fruit growers: “It will be frosty in the inner Alps and in the Waldviertel and Mühlviertel regions,” say the meteorologists.

Sun on Wednesday, then rain again
On Wednesday (Servatius), sunshine will prevail in the morning. “Starting around noon, however, some clouds will move in from the north, so the sun will make fewer appearances in the afternoon,” GeoSphere adds.

As things stand today, it will then turn wet again on Thursday (Bonifatius) and Friday (Sophia). Clouds will prevail and rain will be widespread.