Bura, everyone’s favorite gusty, icy cold wind, is currently ripping its way across the coast. While the sun in Split is inviting us in with open arms, it’s cold, and if there is no reason to go outside, no one is. As we look back on the last few days of frigid cold (with today being the real kicker) how has the bura affected the coast thus far?
For starters, the stormy winds have caused real problems for those traveling in and out of Dubrovnik airport. Yesterday all flights in and out of Dubrovnik were diverted to Split, with passengers transported to and from Dubrovnik to Split by bus. This morning, strong winds forced a flight cancelation from Dubrovnik to Zagreb, but passengers were transported by bus to Split where they continued their journeys by plane for afternoon arrivals and departures, depending on the weather or trouble, reports Slobodna Dalmacija on January 7, 2017.
According to the Croatian Automobile Club (HAK), all traffic is currently closed on the Dr. Franjo Tudjman bridge in Dubrovnik, but as of this morning, the Port Authority in Dubrovnik has said that maritime transport is being carried out according to timetables.
The Meteoalarm has issued a red alert due to low air temperature and wind gusts, and according to the Central Weather Bureau, Dubrovnik this morning measured -4.9 degrees Celsius.
Cold and windy weather continued on the Makarska Riviera where the storm was blowing at around 90 with hurricane speeds of up to 135 kilometers per hour. The ferry line Sumartin-Makarska is still disrupted and not a single ferry on the line Drvenik-Sucuraj is running, reports Dalmacija News. Makarska this morning measured -8 degrees Celsius, and caution should be taken when driving on the D8 in the Makarska area.
Reporting from the TCN office in Split I can say that its’s cold, gusty, and probably safest to stay inside. This morning greeted us with -7 degrees Celcius but with the windchill it felt like -16 degrees Celcius. The city center looks like a ghost town and reports of fallen trees, tipped over trash containers, and broken street poles have graced headlines over the last few days. Kata Botica from the National Weather Service in Split said that -7 degrees Celcius is the coldest temperature the city has seen in more than half a century – the last time Split recorded lower temperatures was in 1963 reports Vecernji List on January 7, 2017.
For those of you traveling in Split by sea, none of the current catamaran lines are running: Line 9604 Ubli – Vela Luka – Hvar – Split, Line 9603 Jelsa – Bol – Split, Line 9608 Korčula – Hvar – Split. Some of the ferries from Split are currently running, but that could change due to weather throughout the day. The ferry from Split-Solta is currently not running. Flights in and out of Split airport are operating.
Index.hr reports that the sea is already frozen in some parts today, for example in Jadrtovac near Sibenik where the ice along the coast is encompassing chained-together boats.
In Zadar the boat line 431a Zadar-Preko is not operating. In Šibenik ferry line 532 Šibenik-Kaprije-Žirje is not operating, and in Rijeka catamaran line 9309 Novalja-Rab-Rijeka is currently not operating.
The coast and the islands are marked in the red for today and tomorrow, with very low temperatures and strong gusts of winds continuing throughout the day and night. While we brave the cold temperatures we should be thankful we aren’t sat on the top of the highest point of Biokovo which measured -23.1 degrees Celsius (the lowest temperature in Croatia), or that we aren’t experiencing tornados like we did last year in Split…yet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v=0F0FeQZcFDY
