Snow and ice widespread Thursday across Latvia

"This morning snow and icing in most of the territory of Latvia make it difficult to drive on the country's main and regional roads. The snowy sections of the road are being cleaned and sprinkled with anti-slip materials. In order to improve driving conditions, 114 units of winter service equipment are operating," said Latvian State Roads (Latvijas Valsts Ceļi, LVC).

Driving on regional roads is difficult throughout Latvia, except for the Valka area, LVC said, urging drivers to be especially careful when choosing a speed appropriate to the condition of the road surface and keeping a safe distance from vehicles in front.

LVC's interactive map records several inidents and accidents Thursday morning, including on the A2 and A7 highways You can examine it here.

Cloudy weather is expected during the rest of Thursday with rain in the west, but more snow still expected in the east. Winds will be moderate to moderately strong with gusts of 15-19 m/s, on the coast 20-24 m/s. Temperatures will range from  +4 C to +9 C in the west, in the east -1 to +4 C, so driving conditions will likely remain treacherous with ice, slush and water on the roads.

Continuing snowfall led to the issuing of a yellow alert (potential danger) across a large swathe of central and eastern Latvia for the rest of Thursday, with 5-6 cm expected on top of around 10 cm that fell overnight. Additionally a yellow alert for rain and wind are in place along western coastal areas.