Meteorologists: If the forecast heavy snow covers the Balkans in spring, it will quickly 'melt away'

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - After an above-average warm winter that is still ongoing calendar-wise, many are wondering what weather awaits us in spring. The answer was given yesterday by the most famous meteorological service AccuWeather, which published a forecast for spring in Europe, including the Balkans.

AccuWeather says that the Balkan Peninsula will have normal or even slightly above-normal precipitation levels this spring. The wettest part of the season is expected to last from March to early April, when storms passing through the Mediterranean Sea will also reach the south of eastern Russia, bringing precipitation and rain.

During March, heavy snowfall is expected, according to AccuWeather, which could lead to travel disruptions across the entire Balkan region. This applies especially to the mountains.
From the end of April to May, the risk of severe thunderstorms will increase, bringing with them the risk of floods and dangerous winds.

Nedim Sladić, an amateur meteorologist, explains the forecast for Patria and what can be said at this moment.

“I am still analyzing this, and according to AccuWeather, this is analogous to the spring of 1995. Winter bites and a stronger cyclonic influence in the Mediterranean are not excluded this spring, according to them, along with occasional intrusions of cold air masses.

It should not come as a surprise if heavier snow falls at higher altitudes in March; this is quite normal for the mountains, where statistically the greatest snow depth is recorded precisely in March.
An example of this is 2006, when we had 345 cm at the top of Bjelašnica, which is the highest measured snow depth according to official measurements. Similarly, in March 2015, there was also over 3 meters of snow. Generally speaking, spring is initially fickle and changeable, especially in March, when intrusions of cold air masses from the north and warm ones from the south of the continent battle for dominance, often leading to sudden weather changes and temperature fluctuations.

March 2019, although quite sunny, nice and dry for many, was completely atypical. I think we have no reason to worry. A stronger winter now seems unlikely. This year, it is true, we cannot completely rule out intrusions of colder air masses from the north of the continent and winter bites until April, but winter did not show its true face when it was supposed to in its main part. After all, the day is much longer and the angle of the sun is different. And even if some major snow were to occur in the lowlands, which is unlikely, it will quickly melt away,” says Sladić.