Italian Civil Protection Issues Weather Warning for Sicily as Winter Cyclone Approaches
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A winter cyclone is set to affect Italy in the days leading up to Christmas, bringing widespread bad weather and snowfall at higher elevations. Based on the latest forecasts, the Civil Protection Department has issued a warning for adverse weather conditions.
From early this morning, the alert forecasts widespread rainfall, including heavy showers, across southern Piedmont and western Liguria. Snow is expected above 1,000–1,200 metres, with the snow line locally dropping during the afternoon to between 500 and 700 metres.
In the coming hours, ahead of the full winter change, intense showers of North African origin will continue to affect the far south. Sicily, Calabria, followed by Basilicata and Puglia, will experience conditions more typical of autumn, driven by warm and very humid air masses arriving from Algeria, Tunisia and Libya.
Given the expected weather phenomena, the Civil Protection Department has issued a yellow weather alert for parts of Sicily, Puglia, Calabria and Basilicata for today.
Forecast for Tuesday, 23 December
In northern Italy, skies will be overcast with widespread precipitation over the north-western regions and western Emilia-Romagna, extending to the rest of the region during the evening. In Piedmont, precipitation will turn to snow at around 800 metres, with the snow line rising as the day progresses. Partly cloudy conditions are expected over Lombardy, Trentino-Alto Adige and upper Veneto.
In central Italy and Sardinia, skies will be cloudy across all regions. Rain is expected in the first part of the day over Tuscany and Sardinia, later extending to Lazio, Umbria and locally to the Adriatic regions.
In southern Italy and Sicily, skies will be variably cloudy with rainfall and showers affecting Campania, Calabria, southern Puglia and Sicily.
Minimum temperatures are expected to remain generally stable or rise slightly across the country. Maximum temperatures will drop sharply in Sardinia and Sicily, rise in Basilicata and remain broadly unchanged elsewhere. Winds will be moderate westerlies over the major islands, moderate northerly winds over Liguria, and moderate sirocco winds over southern Puglia.
Outlook for Wednesday, 24 December
On Wednesday, scattered rain is expected in northern regions, particularly over Piedmont and Emilia-Romagna. Central Italy will see variable conditions with some rain along the Tyrrhenian coast. In the south and on the islands, unsettled weather will persist, with showers and isolated thunderstorms, especially over Sicily, Calabria and the Ionian coast of Puglia.
