Yesterday Iceland was hit by a typical winter storm bomb: Violent winds, rain, sleet and snow – and all imaginable combinations of those ingredients. All domestic flights were delayed as well as numerous international flights. The torrential downpour and melting snow turned streets and parking lots in Reykjavík into rivers and lakes.
Read more: Photos, videos: Storm turns Reykjavík streets, parking lots into lakes and rivers
Violent storms blow cars off the road
The violent winds also meant that all major roads out of Reykjavík were closed, including the Ring Road to the South Iceland, the Ring Road to West and North Iceland, the roads to Þingvellir National Park and even the highway to Keflavík was closed.
The roads were closed for a very good reason: These winter storms reach hurricane force! Violent winds can easily blow cars off the road. This has actually happened frequently during storms. Recently the Road and Coastal Authority has begun to close the windiest parts of the Ring Road when these storms hit.
Two of the windiest parts of the Ring Road are just north of Reykjavík, the foothills of Hafnarfjall mountain and mount Esja.
Read more: Watch a video of a RV get blown off the road just north of Reykjavík
Hurricane force winds!
When the storm peaked around 9:00 yesterday morning the sustained windspeeds on the Ring Road along Mt Hafnarfjall in West Iceland topped 32 m/s (71 mph), while the top speed in localized winds and individual windgusts was 56.2 m/s (125 mph). Just for reference: A Category One hurricane, according to the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, has sustained windspeeds of at least 35 m/s (74 mph), while a Category Three hurricane has sustained windspeeds of at least 50 m/s (96 mph).
A hurricane force storm does not provide the ideal conditions for travel!
The foothills of Hafnarfjall mountain is one of the windiest part of the Ring Road, but the winds on the Ring Road are pretty calm compared to storms in the Central Highlands. Yesterday the weather monitoring station at Ásgarðsfjall mountain in the Kerlingafjöll mountain range in the Central Highlands recorded sustained windspeeds of 51 m/s (114 mph), a category three hurricane, and localized winds of 59 m/s (132 mph), a category four hurricane.
Yesterday Iceland was hit by a typical winter storm bomb: Violent winds, rain, sleet and snow – and all imaginable combinations of those ingredients. All domestic flights were delayed as well as numerous international flights. The torrential downpour and melting snow turned streets and parking lots in Reykjavík into rivers and lakes.
Read more: Photos, videos: Storm turns Reykjavík streets, parking lots into lakes and rivers
Violent storms blow cars off the road
The violent winds also meant that all major roads out of Reykjavík were closed, including the Ring Road to the South Iceland, the Ring Road to West and North Iceland, the roads to Þingvellir National Park and even the highway to Keflavík was closed.
The roads were closed for a very good reason: These winter storms reach hurricane force! Violent winds can easily blow cars off the road. This has actually happened frequently during storms. Recently the Road and Coastal Authority has begun to close the windiest parts of the Ring Road when these storms hit.
Two of the windiest parts of the Ring Road are just north of Reykjavík, the foothills of Hafnarfjall mountain and mount Esja.
Read more: Watch a video of a RV get blown off the road just north of Reykjavík
Hurricane force winds!
When the storm peaked around 9:00 yesterday morning the sustained windspeeds on the Ring Road along Mt Hafnarfjall in West Iceland topped 32 m/s (71 mph), while the top speed in localized winds and individual windgusts was 56.2 m/s (125 mph). Just for reference: A Category One hurricane, according to the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, has sustained windspeeds of at least 35 m/s (74 mph), while a Category Three hurricane has sustained windspeeds of at least 50 m/s (96 mph).
A hurricane force storm does not provide the ideal conditions for travel!
The foothills of Hafnarfjall mountain is one of the windiest part of the Ring Road, but the winds on the Ring Road are pretty calm compared to storms in the Central Highlands. Yesterday the weather monitoring station at Ásgarðsfjall mountain in the Kerlingafjöll mountain range in the Central Highlands recorded sustained windspeeds of 51 m/s (114 mph), a category three hurricane, and localized winds of 59 m/s (132 mph), a category four hurricane.
