Bulgaria experienced extreme snowfall in the northeast on January 19 and is bracing itself for another day of chaos on January 20 2010.

Varna was one of the places most affected by the weather – for the second day running, all flights from Varna to and from Sofia were cancelled because of strong winds and poor visibility. The municipality said, however, that a fleet of snow-clearing machines were active all night and most major arteries in the city are now secured.

Bulgaria experienced particularly heavy snowfall in the northeast of the country with more expected on January 20. A state of emergency was declared in seven Varna municipalities – Aksakovo, Avren, Byala, Vetrino, Vulchi Dol, Dolni Chiflik and Souvorovo, Dnevnik daily reported on January 20 2010.

In some places in Dobrudja in northeastern Bulgaria snow accumulation exceeded one metre. The Bulgarian civil protection service reported, however, that no people were stranded in vehicles. On January 19 a Turkish bus travelling to Romania hit a wall of snow but rescue workers managed to extract it. All passengers were reported safe.

The Hemus Motorway along the Varna-Slunchevo road is shut for traffic, as well as the secondary roads Souvorovo-Vetrino, and Souvorovo-Vulchi Dol.

Meanwhile, as the day unfolds, the weather system will intensify over western Bulgaria as the snow gradually recedes in the east. Up to 10cm of new snow cover is expected on average in the west of the country on January 20 2010, the Bulgarian Meteorological Institute said on its website.

Temperatures will range between -3 and -9C on average, while Sofia will be around -2C. Mild to moderate northwesterly winds will prevail for most of the day.

Along the Black Sea coast conditions are expected to remain cold and windy, with temperatures ranging between -2 and -6C but skies should clear by the afternoon.

Snow and moderate winds will prevail in the mountains as well, although as the system shifts, some mountains may experience more intense weather than others, but everywhere visibility will be poor. Temperatures at 1200m will be at -9C whereas at 2000m they will be about -14C. For comprehensive conditions on individual mountains and skiing facilities contact the Mountain Rescue Service website at www.pss.bg

It is important to remember that with fresh snow accumulating over old snow, mountain slopes become layered with snow of different density, making for ideal conditions for avalanches. Skiers and snowboarders should remain on designated slopes only.