Latvia could have warmest winter in 100 years

RIGA - Latvia could be ready for its warmest winter in 100 years, an expert has said. Andris Viksne, head of forecasting for the Latvian meteorological department, said that weather trends showed that the country’s winters were becoming warmer.

He said the wind flow from the Atlantic and warming of the Atlantic Ocean were among reasons behind the changes.“The temperature is growing, especially in the winter time. During the last 100 years it’s been growing by around 1.5 degrees; it’s quite big if we’re talking about climatologic changes,” Viksne told The Baltic Times.

“It could be the warmest winter in the last 100 years.”

“The weather is becoming too extreme because of the warming of the climate and warming of the Atlantic Ocean.”

However, the weather expert  also said people should still wrap up warmly despite the changes. Temperatures could still fall below 20 degrees this winter, he warned. 

He added: “If the forecast shows that in the next months it will be very warm, this does not mean there won’t be strong cold spells. We should be ready for rapid changes in the weather.” 

Viksne also said that statistics showed that the temperature in late October and November would increase by at least two degrees.