Croatia hit by sudden weather shift bringing snow

(Photo: HAK)

A sudden change in weather has brought winter conditions back to parts of Croatia, with fresh snowfall, low temperatures and strong bura winds causing disruption on roads, particularly in mountainous regions.

Snow fell overnight in several higher-altitude areas. On Sljeme, the peak of Medvednica above Zagreb, around 10 centimetres of new snow was recorded on Wednesday morning.

Further west in Delnice, in the mountainous Gorski Kotar region, around 8 centimetres of snow has fallen, while the high-altitude station on Zavižan continues to report more than half a metre of snow on the ground.

The winter conditions have created difficulties on a number of roads since early Wednesday. According to the Croatian Automobile Club (HAK), roads across much of the country are wet and slippery, while full winter conditions are present on some routes in Gorski Kotar and Lika.

Strong bura winds are also affecting coastal areas, particularly beneath the Velebit mountain range, where gusts have reached gale force.

As a result, traffic restrictions have been introduced for certain categories of vehicles, and the risk of falling rocks has also been reported in exposed areas.

Due to the combination of severe wind and winter road conditions, there is currently no open route for heavy goods vehicles travelling between inland Croatia and the coast.

Sljeme (Photo: Webcam)

HAK reports that trucks with trailers and articulated lorries cannot travel from the interior towards the Croatian coast or Istria, or in the opposite direction. The restrictions are mainly due to strong winds on the A6 motorway and winter conditions on the DC3 state road, 24sata writes.

Drivers urged to take extra care

Road maintenance teams are actively clearing snow and spreading grit, but traffic may move slowly in some areas due to winter service vehicles operating at reduced speeds.

(Photo: HAK)

Drivers are being urged to adjust their speed to the conditions, maintain a safe distance between vehicles and avoid travelling without proper winter equipment.

Authorities say caution is essential as the sudden return of winter weather continues to affect higher-lying parts of the country.