Too Much Snow? Snowmageddon in the Alps!

Image: snow-forecast.com

Crazy amounts of snow fell in the Alps in Europe this winter! December was the snowiest start to a season in the Alps since the 1996/97 season. Some resorts reported a meter in 24 hours, and 3 meters in a week in January.

Tourist office at Saas Fee. Image: snow-forecast.com

In December and January, Tignes in France reported 552 centimeters of snowfall. Zermatt in Switzerland measured 10 feet in two weeks in January, and a total snowfall of 796 centimeters!

Val d’Isere. Image: Bloomberg

Access to Zermatt was closed twice in the month of January. Roads were closed due to the insane amounts of snow, and a state of emergency was declared. Tourists were flown from the area by helicopter. The avalanche danger was at a Level 5, the highest it has been since 1999.

Crews dig out a rail line in the Swiss Alps. Image: Bloomberg

Crews worked hard to dig out lifts, and are still working to dig out roads in the area. 

Val d’Isere, France. Image: severe-weather.EU Twitter Page

Tignes, France. Image: Ski.com

Packed snow bases at resorts as of mid-April:

France – 300+ cm

Austria – ~320 cm

Switzerland – over 3 meters

Italy – 430+ cm (twice the volume of snow at the same time last year)

Val d’Isere in France will re-open lifts for summer skiing on June 3rd for the first time in their 82-year history!

Verbier, Switzerland. Image: verbinet.com

Snow walls in the Alps. Image: dailymail.com

Check out the train in Zermatt plowing through the snow in the video below:

To say that Europe got a ton of snow this season would be an understatement.