Icelandic Met Office issues yellow weather warnings for Suðurland and Faxaflói

The Icelandic Meteorological Office (Veðurstofa Íslands) has issued yellow weather warnings for the regions of Suðurland (Southern Region) and Faxaflói, with severe weather predicted for late Wednesday night into Thursday morning, which could disrupt travel. The warnings were first reported by mbl.is.

There is some disagreement among sources regarding the exact start times of the warnings. For Suðurland, mbl.is reports a start time of 03:00 tonight, while Sunnlenska lists it as 04:00. For Faxaflói, the start time is variously reported as either 03:00 or 04:00 by Vísir and mbl.is. In both regions, the warnings are expected to remain in effect until between 08:00 and 09:00 Thursday morning.

Forecasts from the Icelandic Meteorological Office and local media predict sustained winds of 13–20 m/s accompanied by rain during the warning period. Wind gusts may locally exceed 30 m/s, particularly in areas near mountains. The strongest winds are expected late tonight and during the early hours of Thursday.

RÚV and Sunnlenska anticipate strong south-easterly winds in many areas, with hazardous gusts for vehicles exposed to the wind, particularly near Eyjafjöll mountain. However, Vísir reports the wind could instead come from the south-western sector, also at 13–20 m/s with rain. The exact prevailing wind direction remains uncertain due to conflicting reports.

Residents and travelers in Suðurland and Faxaflói are advised to monitor updates from the Icelandic Meteorological Office as the event approaches and to exercise caution during the hours of strongest winds.

Background

The Icelandic Meteorological Office is Iceland’s national weather service and government agency under the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources. It monitors weather, earthquakes, and volcanic activity, issuing yellow, orange, and red warnings (with red as the most severe). Suðurland (Southern Region) is a region in southern Iceland, with Selfoss as its largest town. Faxaflói is a bay in southwest Iceland, situated between the peninsulas of Snæfellsnes and Reykjanes.

TopicsFaxaflóiIcelandIcelandic Meteorological OfficeSuðurlandweather warningswindstorm