Winter weather warning: Snow, icy roads expected across the Netherlands this week

Dutch meteorological service KNMI issued a Code Yellow weather warning for nearly all of the Netherlands lasting from Sunday evening up to the start of Tuesday. The warning was distributed for a risk of both slippery conditions on the roadways and the possibility of winter precipitation. The possibility of overnight freezing temperatures, snow, sleet and hail will continue through next week, with the heaviest precipitation expected on Sunday and Monday.

The winter weather warning covers Limburg on Sunday morning, and then begins again across all provinces later in the day. South Limburg could see up to two centimeters of fresh snow cover in the morning. The alert will begin again at 6 p.m. everywhere except Noord-Holland, Zeeland and Zuid-Holland, where the alert starts at 10 p.m. The warning continues everywhere until 11:59 p.m. on Monday night. There was no warning issued for the Wadden Islands or the region immediately around the IJsselmeer.

"Tonight and during the night into Monday there is a chance of slippery conditions due to freezing of wet road sections and winter precipitation (hail or snow)," the KNMI wrote. "Temporary snow cover of several centimeters may form in several places, especially inland. This may cause disruption to traffic and outdoor activities."

The wind could also pick up strength on Sunday evening into the overnight hours. Sustained winds were expected to hold anywhere from about 40 to 60 kilometers per hour, with gusts reaching up to around 80 kilometers per hour in the Wadden Island region. Sunday should see temperatures reaching up to about 5 degrees Celsius, which could be the warmest for the next seven days. It should dip down to 1 degree overnight.

Looking ahead, the KNMI predicted "winter showers, with a chance of slippery conditions, especially inland. It seems it will remain dry only on Wednesday. The sun will also shine regularly on Thursday and Friday. Temperatures will be (slightly) below normal, with extensive frost at night." A Code Yellow alert could be issued any day next week.

Monday and Tuesday will see daytime highs of 2 to 3 degrees, which will likely fall by another degree on Wednesday. The rest of the week could be about the same or slightly warmer during the day. Overnight temperatures should be below zero nearly everywhere in the country from Tuesday through Saturday. This could even fall to 5 degrees below zero on Thursday, and 3 degrees below zero each other night.

The weather could gradually get warmer and dryer the following week.

Icy road warning from January 14-16, 2024