Life

A blast of Siberian air looked set to keep its icy grip on the Basque lands for several days more as the Basque Government's Interior Department maintained its orange alert warning because of freezing temperatures and risk of freezing.

According to provisions given by Euskalmet, Friday will continue to be cold though somewhat less damp. Very light snowfall is expected today but there is a greater risk of freezing, with temperatures dropping as low as -6ºC in Navarre.

Bilbao was the only Basque capital where temperatures remained above 0º Celsius, (3ºC). In Donostia-San Sebastian, temperatures dipped to –3 ºC, while in Vitoria-Gasteiz temperatures fell to –6ºC.

The capital, Vitoria-Gasteiz, was particularly affected by the weather, which caused a number of traffic problems in the city and its surrounding area with a record of 25 traffic accidents due to the snow.

In Arrasate, Mondragon University shut and classes were cancelled for over 2,000 students.

The cold is expected to continue through the weekend.