"The most snow we’ve seen this winter"
The Easter blizzard is in full force in Ísafjörður as can be seen in this picture. mbl.is/Halldór Sveinbjörnsson
"We call this an early Easter blizzard in Ísafjörður," says Halldór Sveinbjörnsson, mbl.is’s correspondent in Ísafjörður. He is referring to the heavy snowfall that has caused the risk of avalanches and its level of danger close to the town.
Commercial buildings in Ísafjörður have been evacuated due to the risk of avalanches. The houses are under Seljalandshlíð at the edge of the town. The Icelandic Met Office has declared a yellow alert danger level in Ísafjörður and roads have been closed due to impassability.
"There's been a fair amount of snow around the town and yes, we've seen worse, but this is the first day of winter in Ísafjörður," says Sveinbjörnsson, and when a journalist asks him to explain in more detail: "This is the most snow we’ve seen this winter."
He says that small cars have become stuck in the snow in many places in the town as the traffic is very bad. Then all the roads out of town are closed.
Big brother looks after the fjord
Þór, the Coast Guard's patrol ship - or "big brother" as Sveinbjörnsson describes the ship - is available in Ísafjörður for security at the request of the police authorities. The ship has been at Ísafjörður Harbor since Saturday.
A yellow alert is in effect in the Westfjords, Breiðafjörður and in the north. Map/Icelandic Met Office
The Icelandic Met Office expects that the danger level will be in effect until Saturday. A small avalanche fell from Inner-Bæjargil above Flateyri last night, and several avalanches fell into the sea in Súgandafjörður today. An avalanche also fell from Raknadalshlíð at Patreksfjörður this morning.
A flood expert told mbl.is earlier today that there is still no reason to declare a danger level elsewhere in the Westfjords. A level of uncertainty due to avalanches has been declared elsewhere in the Westfjords and also in the North.
