Thursday night was a busy night for the gritter teams whose job it is to keep our roads free of ice. Katrien Kiekens of the Flemish Roads and Traffic Agency says that last night 575 tonnes of salt was spread across the region’s roads. A Code Yellow warning for slippery road conditions was in force across the country on Thursday night. On Friday morning the Flemish Roads and Traffic Agency warned that conditions could still be slippery in some areas. The Code Yellow warning remained in force until 10am.
Although KMI had issued a Code Yellow warning for slippery road conditions, the roads were pretty much ok in most areas. “Nevertheless, our teams gritted in Flemish Brabant, East Flanders, West Flanders and in parts of Limburg”, Katrien Kiekens said.
A total of 575 tonnes of salt was used to treat the roads. "On Wednesday night we gritted here and there, but last night we gritted widely for the first time. This is the first cold snap of the season”.
On Thursday the snow caused a considerable amount on congestion on the roads. The Roads and Traffic Agence will continue to monitor the situation today.
Freezing temperatures during the weekend
Friday morning is mainly dull with a chance of fog that could be freezing fog in some areas. The Royal Meteorological Institute (KMI) also says that there could be some light snowfall in some areas. While the Code Yellow warning for slippery conditions was lifted at 10am in most areas, it remains in force until 12 noon in Namur Province and 1pm in Luxembourg Province.
Cloud will start to clear during the afternoon and by the evening the skies will be largely clear of cloud. Maximum temperatures will vbetween freezing point or -1°C in the Ardennes and 4°C at the coast.
Friday night will start off with clear skies. Later in the night there will be low cloud in some areas and freezing fog. Temperatures will fall to between -1°C and -3°C in lowland areas and between -3°C and -9°C in upland areas of the country.
On Saturday morning temperatures will remain below freezing in many areas and there is aq chance of freezing fog. It will then be bright and quite sunny. Temperatures will reach no higher than -1°C in the Ardennes and 4°C at the coast. During the night a front bringing wintery showers will sweep across the country from the west.
Sunday will start off with wintery showers. They will be in the form of sleet in Flanders and snow south of the rivers Sambre and Meuse. A second front will bring rain later in the day. De maximum temperatures will range bet 0°C or -1°C on the High Fens to 7°C at the coast.