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WEATHER

Swiss ski resorts wake up to September snow

It appears the summer hiking season may be over for another year as many Swiss alpine resorts saw fresh snow over the weekend.

Swiss ski resorts wake up to September snow
Snow at the Fontanay lift, Verbier. Photo: Verbier webcam
A cold front saw temperatures fall last week and over the weekend, with many places in the lowlands experiencing ground frost. 
 
With the snow level dropping to 1,500m and heavy precipitation in many parts, on Monday many alpine resorts woke up to fresh snow on the ground. 
 
“Winter is coming, how to resist?” tweeted Verbier, its webcam pictures looking distinctly wintry. 
 
 
Laax, St Moritz, the Jungfrau region and Crans-Montana were among the other resorts whose webcams showed snow on Monday.
 
So does this mean the definitive end of summer? Unfortunately MeteoSuisse thinks so. 
 
Writing on Sunday, the federal meteorologists compared the month of September this year with 2016, and found it was unlikely we would see a return to warm weather. 
 
As in 2016, average temperatures dropped below 16 degrees in the middle of the month. But whereas in 2016 that was preceded by 11 hot days above 25 degrees, this year temperatures in the first half of the month were lower, with only seven days exceeding 20 degrees. 
 
 
Though temperatures may go up slightly, we are unlikely to see a “spectacular rise” in temperatures in the second half of the month as the cold air has settled over the country for several days already, said MeteoSuisse. 
 
Prediction models show the maximum temperature is likely to remain below 20 degrees for the rest of the month.
 
Based on Geneva’s weather, temperatures for this September are likely to be between 0.7 and 1.9 degrees below the norm for this time of year.
 
“Everything tells us that summer is well and truly over,” meteorologists concluded.
 
Roll on the ski season then…

SKIING

Two skiers killed in Swiss avalanche

Two cross-country skiers have been killed in an avalanche near the plush resort of Klosters in southeast Switzerland, police said Saturday.

Two skiers killed in Swiss avalanche

The accident happened on Friday, the Graubunden regional police said.

“In the Schintersiten area they took a slope with a steep gradient,” a police statement said.

“Several avalanches broke out and dragged the two men about 200 metres down the rocky terrain.

“As a result, both the 54-year-old and his 57-year-old companion, both of whom lived in the canton of Bern, were fatally injured.”

The Graubunden public prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation alongside the cantonal police.

Before Friday’s accident, 12 people had lost their lives in avalanches in Switzerland since October 1 last year, according to statistics from the WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research.

A total of 142 avalanche-related accidents have occurred, with 188 people swept away.

Earlier this month, six cross-country skiers went missing in a storm near the southern luxury resort of Zermatt. The group, aged 21 to 58, included five members of the same family.

Five bodies were recovered and the search for the sixth person was ultimately called off.

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