Reminder: Cyclone Touches Down In Iceland Tonight

An orange warning is now in effect for the entire country. High winds will begin touching down in the southwest this evening, getting progressively worse through Friday, but calming down again by Saturday morning.

The Reykjavík area will see winds climb into 15 to 23 metres per second this evening, reaching as high as 28 metres per second by tomorrow. Gusts will be even stronger than this, especially in higher altitude suburbs and neighbourhoods closer to the mountains.

South Iceland will be hit with the greatest brunt of the cyclone, as winds will reach speeds from 25 to 33 metres per second on Friday, with gusts hitting as hard as 50 metres per second near mountains. Furthermore, the south can also expect mixed precipitation, combining both rain and snow.

The northwest and northeast of the country can also expect high winds, reaching anywhere from 20 to 30 metres per second, along with blowing snow and gusts up to 40 metres per second near the mountains.

Throughout the country, you can expect a lot of road closures and cancelled domestic flights, so road travel on Friday is highly inadvisable. Flights in and out of Iceland may also be greatly delayed or cancelled, so check with your airline if you are expecting to fly in or out of Iceland on Friday.

As always, check the weather forecast and road conditions before traveling anywhere.