Stormy weather left thousands of households without electricity in Finland on Tuesday as strong autumn winds swept across the country, with the most severe conditions expected in western and central regions. The storm is also bringing a sharp change in temperatures, with snow possible in northern areas later in the week.
More than 5,000 households were without electricity at around 11am, according to the electricity outage map maintained by Finnish Energy. The Ostrobothnia rescue service had received 12 assignments related to preventing or dealing with storm damage by the same time.
The Finnish Meteorological Institute had issued wind warnings across Finland, with the exception of Lapland. Western winds were expected to strengthen to dangerous levels in some areas during Tuesday afternoon, particularly in western and central Finland.
Meteorologist Heikki Sinisalo said in the institute’s forecast that storm damage was possible across most of Finland outside Lapland. The situation was expected to be particularly difficult in the Ostrobothnia regions, Pirkanmaa and Central Finland.
The strongest inland gusts were forecast to exceed 20 metres per second. Such conditions can bring down trees and damage electricity networks, increasing the risk of power cuts in exposed areas. Ostrobothnia, Pirkanmaa, Satakunta and Central Finland were among the regions facing the strongest winds.
The winds were expected to weaken during Tuesday evening, although unsettled conditions will remain on Wednesday. The strongest gusts are forecast to shift further north as the weather system moves across the country.
The storm will also mark a noticeable change from the relatively mild temperatures seen in southern Finland at the beginning of the week. Cold air from the northwest is expected to spread across the country behind the low-pressure system, bringing temperatures down in both the north and south.
Foreca meteorologist Sara Salonen said precipitation around Kilpisjarvi on Wednesday could fall mainly as snow. The highest parts of the fells in the area could see the first continuous snow cover of the season.
The colder weather will not be limited to northern Finland. Southern Finland began the week with daytime temperatures of around 15 C, but readings are expected to remain below 10 C in many parts of the south later in the week. In northern Lapland, daytime temperatures could approach 0 C by the end of the week.
Another low-pressure system is expected to reach Finland from Thursday, bringing further unsettled weather. Rain will move into western Finland before spreading more widely south of Lapland on Friday, and some areas could receive significant amounts of precipitation.
The immediate shift to colder weather does not necessarily signal the arrival of a sustained winter, however. The European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts monthly outlook issued on 4 October continues to indicate a milder and wetter October than usual across much of Finland.
The forecast expects temperatures to remain above the long-term average nationwide between 12 and 18 October, with rainfall also likely to be above normal. For the period from 19 October to 1 November, the outlook continues to favour above-average temperatures, although confidence becomes lower further into the forecast period.
For now, the weather pattern points to a distinctly unsettled week for Finland: strong winds and power cuts in the short term, colder temperatures behind the storm and the first signs of winter in the northern fells, while the wider October forecast remains milder than normal.
