April 02, 2022, 06:54 PM
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People in Paris were shocked to wake up to heavy snowfall and a blanket of white outdoors on the first day of April.
For the benefit of those who don't live in temperate countries, the winter season typically ends around mid-March, which made the sudden flurry of snow all the more surprising.
Sudden snowfall
Numerous videos of the phenomenon were posted to Twitter, with some adding the disclaimer that it was not an April Fool's joke.
Newsflash: it is SNOWING in Paris on April 1 and this is not an April Fool’s joke. pic.twitter.com/ZhH7W8UyNl
— Amy Plum 🇺🇦 (@AmyPlumOhLaLa) April 1, 2022
April 1st but the snow is real #Paris pic.twitter.com/ibqNM6u65x
— Icyng | De boa (@lucasicyng) April 1, 2022
This is all the snow we have in Paris 11 at 8.50am
— ChantalTV in ✨Paris✨ (@ChantalTV) April 1, 2022
Quelques flocons ce matin pic.twitter.com/CE6SLDQwSq
April 1, 2022, It's snowing in Paris area right now. First snow of 2021-2022 winter season 😅
— Cinqscories 😼 (@Cinqscories) April 1, 2022
I hope farmers are well prepared this time, same thing happened last year and it destroyed some grape farms (and my lemon tree). pic.twitter.com/phV5TZowxu
One person shared on Mar. 31 that it was so cold that hailstones were dropping from the sky.
Here is the hail in Paris! #grele We are ready for snow #neige pic.twitter.com/AdvbBdAMfJ
— ChantalTV in ✨Paris✨ (@ChantalTV) March 31, 2022
While others lamented about the abrupt chilly weather.
I booked a flight to Paris in April to see the sun, NOT THE FCKING SNOW
— Lù ⎊ | ☽☾ - Outlander era (@admaioralu) April 1, 2022
Sharp change in temperatures
National weather service Météo France stated that the snowfall was "sufficiently notable to disrupt traffic and certain economic activities" and "uncommon at this time of year", reported The Connexion.
The unexpected cold snap is due to an Arctic air mass over Western Europe.
Snow falls in #Paris in the early hours of April 📹 Due to the extraordinary influx of arctic air ❄️, the French capital is experiencing unusually heavy snowfall for the time of year. pic.twitter.com/oNvM7IEhPh
— Meteored | YourWeather (@MeteoredUK) April 1, 2022
According to Accuweather, this is the first snowfall recorded at the Paris Orly Airport in a year, since Feb. 10, 2021.
A Paris resident and founder of an environmental technology company, Romain Lacombe, told Accuweather that "what’s impressive is the speed at which the weather turned, rather than the snow itself".
Lacombe shared that just last weekend, the city was seeing "summer conditions".
Over the past week, Paris experienced temperature highs of 20°C, but the mercury has since dropped to a high of 2°C and a low of 0°C today (Apr. 2).
"With the warmer conditions these past few weeks, some of the trees and flowers have started blooming already and may be killed by [this] freeze wave," Lacombe added.
Temperatures are expected to improve slowly as the Arctic air mass gradually shifts away, an AccuWeather Meteorologist, Alyssa Smithmyer, said.
However, the milder temperatures are likely to be accompanied by rain showers.
Spring snow is not unprecedented — in 2016, Paris saw snow on Apr. 27, and it has also seen snow as late as May in the past.
Meanwhile in Singapore...
Top photo from MeteoredUK / Twitter and LinaAgabani / Twitter
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