Romania Under Yellow Alert for Snowstorms and Freezing Temps

Romania is going through its coldest week of this winter, with snowfall and temperatures down to -20°C. In the south and southeast of the country, including Bucharest, the snow layer will reach up to 20 cm, and the blizzard will make traffic difficult.

Traffic conditions are difficult throughout the country, especially in counties under weather warnings. In Bucharest and on the A1 (Bucharest – Pitesti), A2 (Bucharest – Constanța), A3 (Bucharest – Ploiesti) and A10 (Sebeș – Turda) highways, traffic is in winter conditions, and road workers are constantly intervening with equipment and anti-skid material.

The extreme cold will persist at least until February 24-25, marking an unusually cold February, the opposite of the one in 2024, the warmest in history, meteorologists announce.

On Monday morning, snowfall intensified in southern and southeastern Romania, prompting authorities to issue a yellow code for the counties of Călărași, Constanța, Giurgiu, Ialomița, Ilfov (including Bucharest) and Teleorman.

“We are talking about a weather warning for the six counties, including the city of Bucharest in the south-southeast of the country, until tomorrow morning (ed. – Tuesday, February 18), at 10:00. Periods of snowfall will continue throughout today and at night, so that the snow layer at the end of this episode will reach variable thicknesses, between 10 and 20 cm,” said Elena Mateescu, the director of the National Meteorology Administration (ANM).

During the day and at night there will be periods of snowfall, and the wind will blow with gusts of up to 45 km/h, blowing the snow. 

In the southeast, the snow layer has already reached 15 cm and will continue to grow up to 20 cm. In mountainous areas, snowfall will persist, maintaining a consistent layer of snow.

According to meteorologists, the cold weather episode may last at least until around February 24-25.

“A very cold week is coming, with frosty nights and mornings, certainly the coldest week of the 2024-2025 winter, given the temperature regime and the cold air mass that will intensify as we move forward this week,” said Elena Mateescu.

In the north of the country, temperatures will drop between -16 and -10°C, but in the south the values ​​will also drop below the freezing threshold, reaching -10°C towards the middle and end of the week. In the mountainous area and in the intramountain depressions, the minimums may reach up to -20°C.

“However, be careful with the temperature values, especially in the mountainous area, especially in the depression, where it is possible to approach -20°C,” warned Mateescu.

The cold air mass will dominate the territory of Romania, which could make February 2025 one of the coldest in history, at the opposite end of February 2024, which was the warmest in history.

“The cold weather episode is likely to be characteristic of next week as well, at least until around February 24-25, because the cold air mass, as the signals at this time and the information are, will prevail in our country,” Mateescu said.