New wind and snow alerts on Wednesday: when will absolute calm return?

BarcelonaThe north component wind gives no respite and we have already chained seven consecutive days of intense gusts, concentrated mainly at the ends of the country. This Tuesday, speeds of 100 km/h have again been exceeded, with highlights including 151 km/h in Portbou and 130 km/h at the Darnius-Boadella reservoir (Alt Empordà), 133 km/h at La Tosa d’Alp (elevation 2,478 m, Cerdanya), 125 km/h in Boí (elevation 2,537 m, Alta Ribagorça), 115 km/h at Port del Comte (elevation 2,288 m, Solsonès), 102 km/h at the Santuari de Queralt (Berguedà), and 101 km/h in Mas de Barberans (Montsià). All of this has once again caused incidents in these areas, especially on the Costa Brava.

And the storm will gain extent this Wednesday, with again very strong gusts on the extremes. Instability will increase, and a new, quite widespread snowfall is expected in the Pyrenees, which will especially affect the north face. The wind and snow will not disappear on Thursday, but from Friday onwards the situation will clearly improve, and the key days of Holy Week will be much calmer.

Wednesday: more wind and snow

The meteorological situation will still be marked by strong winds in many regions. The tramuntana will once again be intense in Empordà and in the Pyrenees and Pre-Pyrenees, also reaching the valleys for another day and in more areas of the Girona demarcation. The mistral will also blow strongly in the Ebro, south of Camp de Tarragona and in Ponent, while the gusty wind will strengthen and will also affect other inland areas. In Castellón, Menorca, and much of Mallorca, the wind will also be strong. Speeds will again exceed 100 km/h, and many alerts remain active.

Attention to the Pyrenees, as the snowfall will reactivate and become widespread throughout the day. The most affected area will be the northern face of the Pyrenees, where at high altitudes, more than half a meter of new snow can be accumulated. But the episode will also end up jumping to the southern face, with less significant thicknesses. The snowline will move between 1,200 and 1,400 m. In high mountains, conditions will be extreme, with strong wind, blizzard, snow, and freezing temperatures. There are also alerts activated for snowfall on the northern Pyrenean face, as well as for maritime storm on the Costa Brava.

The sun will dominate in most regions outside the Pyrenees, but throughout the day cloud intervals will increase in the northeast. It will be between Wednesday afternoon and evening and Thursday morning that some irregular showers will fall in regions of Girona and Barcelona. Little, and quite local phenomena. Temperatures will drop in parts of the northeast and in the Pyrenees, with a cooler and more controlled atmosphere. Many highs from 16 to 21 °C, clearly lower in mountain areas.

Clear improvement to sight

On Thursday, the wind will still blow strongly at the edges and it will snow on the north face of the Pyrenees. But the strong wind will lose intensity and will clearly decrease, especially on Friday. From then on, and therefore, during the key days of Easter when more people have a holiday, the anticyclone will dominate. Days of sun and calm are expected everywhere, with the wind dying down and very mild midday temperatures. Temperatures could even exceed 25 °C in the west and south. There will be a marked thermal contrast between day and night, and increasing morning thermal inversion.