Bulgaria faced another day of record low temperatures on January 31 2012, with a "Code Orange" weather warning in force for the whole country and with the severe weather having claimed four lives the previous day.
 
Deaths from cold were reported on January 30 in Gabrovo in northern central Bulgaria and in Smolyan in the southern part of the country, Bulgarian National Radio said.

The two further deaths that were reported were those of a 62-year-old man from the village of Kovachevitsa, Gotse Delchev, who was found dead on January 30 in the street near his home, Bulgarian National Radio said. Police said that the cause of death was frostbite. There was no evidence of violence.
 
The regional directorate of the Interior Ministry said a 55-year-old woman had been found dead in the village of Lesidren, Lovech. She was believed to have died of exposure.
 
For January 31, the weather forecast said that average maximum temperatures would be between minus 15 and minus 10 degrees Celsius, with capital city Sofia facing a forecast high of minus 10.
 
Among temperature records was one set in Rousse, on the Danube, where it was minus 19.9 on the morning of January 30, the coldest the city has been on that day in 50 years.
 
Knezha reported minus 29 degrees, breaking the minus 28 record set in 1942.
 
Overnight into January 31, 11 new low temperature records were set elsewhere, including in Chirpan where it was minus 25. Vidin was minus 24, Pazardzhik minus 21.6, Vratsa minus 20.5, Pleven and Lovech minus 20, Novo Selo minus 19.8, Plovdiv minus 19.6, Svishtov minus 19.2, Oryahovo minus 17.1 and Ahtopol minus 8.6.
 
Bulgarian National Television said that it was windy in eastern Bulgaria, aggravating the wind chill factor.
 
Police patrol teams, in co-operation with municipal social services, were to assist homeless people and those suffering from exposure, the report said.
 
Electricity consumption soared, to the levels seen over the Festive Season holidays.
 
Heating utility Toplofikatsiya Sofia said that all its facilities were operating at full power.
 
According to television station bTV, all schools in Bulgaria’s Black Sea city of Varna were closed until February 2 because of the freezing temperatures.

Other places were schools were closed included Bourgas, Vidin, Assenovgrad, Svishtov and Chirpan.
 
On bTV’s breakfast show, Dr Martin Ivanov, a medical trauma specialist and mountain rescuer, cautioned against drinking alcohol when faced with extreme freezing temperatures.
 
"The feeling that alcohol helps is deceptive," Ivanov said. "It leads to more rapid onset of cooling of the body."