The weather in Spitsbergen has largely been rather unfriendly for a while with a lot of wind, snow and comparatively mild temperatures. The Easter weekend was not as ideal for long trips into the outdoors as many would have wanted. A group of ski expeditioners who wanted to go “Spitsbergen på langs”, a demanding tour from the south cape to the north point of the main island, had to be picked up by helicopter just days after the start.
Gruvefjellet above Nybyen (the buildings are part of Nybyen).
Currently, the weather forecast again includes a lot of wind and snow for Longyearbyen and large parts of Svalbard, and this involves a high avalanche risk. The official warning system
wieder Wind und Schnee bereit. Daher gilt in Longyearbyen und großen Teilen Svalbards wieder varsom.no is now on “red” (stage 4 out of 5).
Large cornices have built up at Gruvefellet next to Nybyen, the upper part of Longyearbyen. These cornices may break off at any time and put buildings at risk. The Sysselmannen has concluded that the only way to keep everybody safe is to evacuate parts of Nybyen until further notice. This includes the buildings on the east side of the road and the adjacing slope of Gruvefjellet. Everybody has to leave from this area until 1800 today (Friday). The evacuation can only be lifted by the Sysselmannen, and it is not known when this will happen.