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Weather: Thunderstorms predicted for central and southern Switzerland on Monday afternoon

After a few days of sunny and dry weather, heavy rains and hail storms have resumed in Swiss regions over the weekend. This is what the situation is right now and what is expected for the coming days.

Published: 26 July 2021 10:29 CEST
Weather: Thunderstorms predicted for central and southern Switzerland on Monday afternoon
30,000 lightning bolts hit Switzerland over the weekend. Photo by Fabrice Coffrini / AFP

Swiss federal weather forecasters have predicted heavy storms for much of central and southern Switzerland from Monday lunchtime onwards. 

Forecasters have predicted a severity of 3 out of a possible 4. The strongest storms are predicted from 1pm to 6pm. 

The following tweet shows where the heaviest storms are forecast. 

Thunderstorms and heavy rains raged across Switzerland, and about 30,000 lightning bolts hit overnight from Saturday to Sunday.

Some areas, including central Switzerland and Ticino, were particularly impacted, flooding basements, blocking roads, and disrupting rail traffic. However, no one was hurt.

In Appenzell, over 33.2 millimeters of rain fell in 10 minutes on Saturday evening — the largest accumulations of precipitation ever measured in such a short time in Switzerland.

In Appenzell Ausserrhoden, large hail stones were dumped on several localities.

READ MORE: Floods: Why was Switzerland impacted less severely than Germany?

What is the forecast for this week?

“We have survived the worst for now,” said Stefan Scherrer, meteorologist at MeteoNews.

After Monday’s storms, individual showers or thunderstorms may continue sporadically for the remainder of the week, “but they will not be severe”.

For the next few days, Scherrer predicts changeable weather.

The sun will peek through the clouds occasionally, interspersing with rain thunderstorms, he said.

Overall, the situation is not expected to be as dire as it had been in the past 10 days, with Swiss lakes and rivers swelling, bursting their banks and flooding nearby areas.

The level of lakes and rivers has fallen to near-normal or normal levels.

READ MORE: Weather update: Lake Zurich bursts banks, Lucerne preparing for flooding

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TRAVEL NEWS

LATEST: More Swiss roads closed due to landslides and flooding

The severe storms that hit the cantons of Valais and Ticino over the weekend have resulted in significant travel disruptions for motorists. 

Published: 2 July 2024 09:44 CEST
LATEST: More Swiss roads closed due to landslides and flooding

The weekend’s floods and landslides resulted in key roads becoming impassable, with some expected to be closed to traffic for several weeks. 

The Federal Roads Office announced on Monday that the following mountain passes are currently inaccessible due to landslides in the affected cantons:

The Nufenen Pass is expected to remain closed until the end of the week (5/7). 

READ MORE: The alternative routes from Switzerland to Italy

The Simplon Pass is closed until further notice.

Outside of Ticino and Valais, the San Bernardino Pass is currently closed due to ongoing roadworks.

These pass closures are in addition to those roads closed in the aftermath of flooding and landslides that hit the country’s southwest at the end of June, making southbound traffic difficult for the time being.

The status of all mountain passes can be checked before travelling at Alpen-pässe, and SRF maintains a constantly updated traffic portal listing road closures and showing traffic jams in real-time.

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