Snowfalls continued in Dobrich and other areas of northeastern Bulgaria as 12 municipalities in the region remained in a state of emergency, Bulgarian media reported on February 9 2010.

According to meteorological reports, weather conditions in certain regions of Bulgaria are expected to "deteriorate severely with heavy snowfall, strong winds and blizzard conditions" on February 10 and 11, Bulgarian National Television (BNT) said on February 9 2010.

A Romanian bus was pulled out of a snow drift near Kavarna on the road Shabla – Durankulak, Bulgarian news agency Focus said. There were no reported casualties. Many roads in the area are difficult to drive as sustained winds and steady snowfalls are severely hampering visibility while snow drifts reach more than 1.5 metre in height.

Conditions are very arduous in villages around the riverside city of Rousse, six municipalities of Silistra and two of Razgrad, while Civil Protection units and snow clearing vehicles continue operating in an attempt to have the conditions "normalised", BNT said.

Snowfall is expected to resume over most of Bulgaria late on February 9 and by February 10 will have engulfed most of the country, the Bulgarian meteorological website was quoted as saying.

Average temperatures for the country will be between -10C and -5C with Sofia at about -4C. Conditions in the mountains will be "austere" with thick fog, snowfall, and strong winds in places reaching "hurricane intensity" in the upper parts of the mountain ranges. Severe danger of avalanches with continuous snowfall.

Along the Black Sea coast, temperatures will be between 4 and 6C, with precipitation expected all along the seafront. Winds will intensify later in the afternoon.