Moscow decrees orange alert due to heavy snowfall

Moscow.- Moscow authorities decreed this Thursday an orange climate alert (the penultimate level) due to the intense snowfall forecast for Thursday night and Friday, according to the Russian Meteorological Service. "The level was raised to orange, which means dangerous weather conditions, with the probability of natural disasters and damage," a representative of the entity told the Russian agency TASS.

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He added that this alert level will be maintained until midnight on January 10, as "heavy, occasionally strong and prolonged snowfall is expected, as well as blizzards, thick layers of snow and ice on the roads." He indicated that the wind gusts, with a northeast direction, will reach speeds of up to 18 meters per second. The yellow alert level had already been decreed previously. The meteorological services explained this increase in rainfall with the influence of a cyclone from the Mediterranean, whose center will reach the west of central Russia on Saturday, and the drop in atmospheric pressure. By this Thursday, the snow cover in Moscow reached a thickness of 30 centimeters, described as a 'record' by Russian meteorologist Mikhail Leus. "Moscow repeated the record snowfall of the current winter," it was noted on Telegram, announcing that in the coming days this level could increase by 10 to 20 centimeters. For their part, the cleaning services of the Russian capital "continue working uninterruptedly in the collection of snow from the city", as stated on Telegram. "According to meteorologists' forecasts, the weather will worsen sharply in the second half of January 8. In the afternoon, an intense snowfall will begin, which will extend until the morning of January 10," they added.