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WEATHER

Switzerland bakes in record June temperatures

Switzerland’s heatwave hit its peak on Sunday with the mercury climbing all the way to 37C in Sion in the canton of Valais.

Published: 30 June 2019 20:56 CEST
Switzerland bakes in record June temperatures
The Valère basilica in Sion. File photo: Depositphotos

That maximum is the hottest temperature ever recorded in Switzerland for the month of June and the first time the 37C mark has been reached in the country since 2015.

It is also just shy of the all-time record for Sion, which is 37.8C, also in 2015.

But Sion was not the only place in Switzerland to sizzle on Sunday after some slight relief on Saturday.

In Chur, the capital of Graubünden, the thermometer climbed to 35.7C while it was a very warm 35.5C in Geneva and 35.1C in Basel.

And the tourist hub of Interlaken saw its hottest June day ever with 34.4C recorded.

Temperatures are expected to dip slightly on Monday to around 31–33C but it will also be more humid, with storms possible, according to forecasters.

The heatwave that currently has Switzerland in its grip has fuelled huge blazes and pollution peaks, and officially claimed four lives in France, two in Italy and another two in Spain, including a 17-year-old harvest worker, a 33-year-old roofer and a 72-year-old homeless man.

Germany also saw a new June temperature record on Sunday, with Bad Kreuznach near Mainz registering 39.3C.

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WEATHER

Will Switzerland be visited by ‘Ice Saints’ this year?

Ascension is not the only annual happening in the country in May, as Switzerland also ‘celebrates’ another 'chilling' event this month.

Published: 8 May 2024 14:20 CEST
Will Switzerland be visited by 'Ice Saints' this year?

From May 11th to the 15th, a meteorological event takes place each year in Switzerland.

It “observes”, though admittedly not on scientific basis, a centuries-old weather phenomenon called “Ice Saints”.

What exactly is it?

As its name suggests, it is related to saints, as well as ice and frost.

The saints in question are St Mamertus, St Pancras, St Servatius and St Boniface.

According to a weather lore, once these Ice Saints have passed through Switzerland in the middle of May, frost will no longer pose a threat to farmers and their land.

As the official government meteorological service MeteoSwiss explains it, “spring frosts have been a regular occurrence for centuries, giving rise to the traditional belief that a blast of cold air often arrives in the middle of May. Over time, this piece of weather lore became known as the Ice Saints.”

Fact versus myth

You may be wondering whether the Ice Saints lore actually has basis in reality.

Records, which date back to 1965 and originate from the Geneva-Cointrin, Payerne, and Zurich-Kloten weather stations, “clearly show that, over the long-term average, frost directly above the soil is only a regular occurrence up until the middle of April”, MeteoSwiss says. “After that, the frequency with which ground frost occurs progressively declines to almost zero by the end of May.”

“We can conclude, therefore, that there is no evidence in Switzerland to confirm the Ice Saints as a period in May when ground frost is more common.”

However, MeteoSwiss does concede that “ground frost is nevertheless a regular occurrence throughout May as a whole…having occurred at least once or twice in May every year, and in around 40 percent of the years there were more than two days in May with ground frost.”

What about this year?

MeteoSwiss weather forecast for the next seven days indicates that, this year too, no frost will be present on the ground in mid-May.

In fact, temperatures through much of Switzerland will be in double digits, reaching between 18C and 25C, depending on the region.

You can see what to expect in your area, here. 

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