Wind gusts up to 105 km/h to hit the Netherlands on Thursday

The western and northern regions of the Netherlands will have to deal with wind gusts of up to 105 kilometers per hour on Thursday. The southern and eastern provinces will also have to contend with strong gusts reaching 85 km/h, Dutch meteorological institute KNMI predicted. A Code Yellow weather warning was issued covering the entire country.

The weather could hinder traffic, the KNMI warned. Weather website Weeronline noted that the gusts could potentially peak at 110 km/h at sea. Sustained wind and gusts are likely to be most fierce during periods of rain showers.

The most powerful sustained winds and gusts will be felt along the coastal provinces of Noord-Holland, Zuid-Holland and Zeeland, as well as the northern provinces of Friesland and Groningen. This will likely also be the case along the Wadden Islands, the Wadden Sea, and the area around the IJsselmeer.

A Code Yellow weather warning was issued for the western coastal provinces from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Thursday. The central, eastern and southern regions will mainly be under the warning from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. The alert will run from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. in Drenthe, Flevoland, and Overijssel. The Code Yellow window ranges from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. across Friesland, Groningen, the IJsselmeer and the Wadden Islands.

The wind direction will also be variable on Wednesday, the KNMI noted. It will initially gather strength, coming in from the south over the course of the afternoon. By the end of the afternoon, the wind will shift from either the west or southwest as the wind reaches its maximum strength.

"The wind will decrease in power during the night leading in to Friday, and the heavy gusts will disappear," Weeronline stated.

However, the weather will not be cold, the KNMI stated. The low early on Thursday morning should be set at about 8 degrees Celsius, and will warm up to about 13 degrees during the afternoon hours.

The weather should remain reasonably dry from Friday through Tuesday, hovering between 8 and 10 degrees during the day. It could be chilly overnight, and even near the freezing point in some areas early in the morning at the start of next week.

Strong wind warnings by region for Thursday through early Friday morning