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Snow, ice and fog hit Germany as winter arrives

The Local Germany
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Snow, ice and fog hit Germany as winter arrives
Snow in Pfronten, Bavaria. Photo: DPA

Snow and sleet fell in the south of Germany on the first day of Advent.

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It came as the mercury dropped across the country. Forecasters warned drivers and pedestrians to look out for slippery surfaces as rain and snow was expected to turn to ice in the freezing temperatures. 

The weather front dubbed ‘Olaf’ brought snow and sleet to the south of Germany on Sunday as the country marked the first day of Advent celebrations in the lead up to Christmas.

Snow mostly fell on higher ground in parts of Saarland, Rhineland-Palatinate, Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria.

Meanwhile, temperatures plummeted across the country and heavy fog caused problems in some areas including Hamburg.

READ ALSO: Temperatures as low as -10C hit southern Germany as country gets colder

Fog around the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg on Sunday. Photo: DPA

On Monday there was set to be highs of between zero and 8C with less snow and rain. A weather warning for fog was in place in the east of Germany around Dresden.

Over the next days there's expected to be strong winds in the north east of the country and a lot of fog and clouds elsewhere.

Photo: DPA

More rain is expected towards the end of the week.

The DWD tweeted the minimum temperatures across Germany on Sunday night.

Autumn warmer than average

For meteorologists, winter begins on the first day of December, signalling the end of autumn. According to the German Weather Service (DWD), autumn was mostly average, although it was a little warmer than normal.

On average, temperatures in Germany have been 10.1C since the beginning of September.

The hottest place in autumn was Coschen, south of Eisenhüttenstadt, where temperatures reached 33.6C. The lowest temperature was recorded by a measuring station on the Swabian Alb, east of Rottweil. It was -9.6C on November 11th.

With a precipitation level of about 205 litres per square metre, autumn was also wetter than previous years. However, the extensive rainfall did not start until the last part September – and therefore came too late for many forests which were dried out during the summer, according to the DWD.

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