HEAVY SNOWFALL IN FEBRUARY 1999

Abstract

After the first ten days of February 1999, two frontal systems passed Slovenia one after another. Heavy precipitation comprised of damp snow caused considerable damage and troubles to our Electric company. In both cases, secondary cyclogenesis took place. In the first case, a rather shallow and small secondary cyclone was formed, causing a secondary wave on the main front. There was no real retardation of the frontal system, only the amount of precipitation over southern and southeastern parts of the country increased. There was no intensive prefrontal orographic precipitation over western Slovenia. The second process was a typical Genoa lee cyclogenesis with a strong SW airflow at the beginning of the process and rather strong orographic precipitation in advance. The cyclone formed on 9th February and then slowly crossed Italy and the central Adriatic. On the afternoon of 11 February it started moving towards Greece. Except in NE Slovenia the monthly precipitation average for February was exceeded, with some parts of the country getting even 150 % of the monthly mean.