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Hazard category 5 (very severe hazard)
Possible impacts
  • Road, rail and air travel may come to a complete standstill
  • There is a high risk of road accidents due to icy conditions, snow drifts and poor visibility
  • Branches may break off under the weight of the snowload and entire trees may be toppled
  • The power supply and telephone communications network may break down completely
Description of measurement and prognostic values
  • Heavy/intensive snowfall in lowland areas of German-speaking Switzerland: >50 cm/24h; >70 cm/48h; >90 cm/72h
  • Heavy/intensive snowfall in lowlands of Western Switzerland and south of the Alps: >50 cm/24h; >70 cm/48h; >90 cm/72h
  • Heavy/intensive snowfall in the mountains: >90 cm/24h; >140 cm/48h; >180 cm/72h

Hazard category 4 (severe hazard)
Possible impacts
  • Disruptions to air and rail travel are to be expected
  • Road traffic delays and an increased risk of accidents are to be expected due to icy conditions, snow drifts and poor visibility
  • Branches may break off under the weight of the snowload and some trees may be toppled
  • The power supply and/or telephone communications network may suffer outages
Description of measurement and prognostic values
  • Heavy/intensive snowfall in lowland areas of German-speaking Switzerland: 30-50 cm/24h; 50-70 cm/48h; 70-90 cm/72h
  • Heavy/intensive snowfall in lowlands of Western Switzerland and south of the Alps: 30-50 cm/24h; 50-70 cm/48h; 70-90 cm/72h
  • Heavy/intensive snowfall in the mountains: 60-90 cm/24h; 100-140 cm/48h; 130-180 cm/72h

Hazard category 3 (significant hazard)
Possible impacts
  • Road, rail and air travel may be disrupted
  • Branches may break off under the weight of the snowload
  • The usability of roads may deteriorate significantly
Description of measurement and prognostic values
  • Heavy/intensive snowfall in lowland areas of German-speaking Switzerland: 15-30 cm/24h; 35-50 cm/48h; 50-70 cm/72h
  • Heavy/intensive snowfall in lowlands of Western Switzerland and south of the Alps: 12-30 cm/24h; 35-50 cm/48h; 50-70 cm/72h
  • Heavy/intensive snowfall in the mountains: 40-60 cm/24h; 70-100 cm/48h; 100-130 cm/72h

Hazard category 2 (moderate hazard)
Possible impactsThere is a danger of icy conditions due to snow-covered roads
Description of measurement and prognostic values
  • Snowfall in lowland areas of German-speaking Switzerland: 10-15 cm/24h; 20-35 cm/48h; 30-50 cm/72h
  • Snowfall in lowlands of Western Switzerland and south of the Alps: 8-12 cm/24h; 20-35 cm/48h; 30-50 cm/72h
  • Snowfall in the mountains: 20-40 cm/24h; 35-70 cm/48h; 50-100 cm/72h

Recommendations for action

Recommendations during snow

Notes

The snowfall warnings are primarily issued for widespread precipitation.

The warning threshold values in category 2 and 3 for lowland areas differ according to region.
  • Description Warning thresholds (PDF, 756.3 kB)
  •
    WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research SLF

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