Unseasonably mild weather prevails in southern and western Finland on Monday, with temperatures set to rise to 15 degrees Celsius in some spots, says Yle meteorologist Kerttu Kotakorpi.
"A warm air mass is flowing over Scandinavia, which is bringing this mild breeze. In the south, temperatures may hover around the 10-degree mark for several days," she says.
The warm air is coming in from western and central Europe, where it has been very warm recently. As it heads toward Finland, the Föhn phenomenon is also raising temperatures. This is a dry, warm, down-slope wind experienced on the downwind side of a mountain range, such as the one that crosses Norway and Sweden.
Little impact from Ophelia
Former Hurricane Ophelia, which is hitting southern Ireland on Monday, is not likely to have much impact on Finland though.
"The remnants of Ophelia will bring strong winds and rain to the Norwegian coast. But they will not affect us beyond normal rain and wind," predicts Kotakorpi.
Indeed, a much stronger low pressure area is speeding across central Finland on Monday. The Finnish Meteorological Institute has issued warnings of winds with gusts of over 20 metres per second for much of Ostrobothnia, Savo, Karelia and southern Lapland.
Further north there's a traffic advisory of slippery roads due to snow or sleet. Central and northern Lapland may receive as much as 15-20 centimetres of snow.
"Power outages and other damage are to be expected," says Kotakorpi.
Other alerts warn of minor flooding around the Espoo River and of strong to gale-force winds on all maritime districts, as well as rough waves exceeding 2.5 meters on the Northern Bay of Bothnia.
