Storms over Scandinavia

Storms over Scandinavia

26 December 2011 and 16 November 2013 12:00 UTC–17 November 12:00 UTC

Storms over Scandinavia
Storms over Scandinavia

Record wind speeds were measured when storms passed northern parts of Scandinavia in late 2011 and 2013.

Last Updated

07 March 2023

Published on

16 November 2013

November 2013

Winter storm Hilde (as named in Norway and Sweden) or Eino (as named in Finland), passed the northern parts of Scandinavia over the weekend of 16–17 November, causing widespread power outages in all three Nordic countries.

The storm battered the Norwegian coast on 16 November. As the storm moved eastward, record-breaking winds were recorded in central and northern parts of Norway and Sweden.

Later on 17 November the storm moved to Finland, felling trees and leaving hundreds of thousands of people temporarily without electricity.

The image shows Meteosat-10 Airmass RGB overlaid with Mean Sea Level Pressure (black contours) and synoptic observations from 17 November 00:00 UTC. The deep low centre is located in northern Sweden; a very sharp cold air trough at the rear of the cyclone can be seen on Norwegian coast. Maximum winds can be found in the vicinity of this trough.

Additional content

Metop AVHRR IR image, black and white overview
Metop AVHRR IR image, black and white zoomed in
Metop AVHRR IR image, colour-enhanced zoomed in


December 2011

Storm Dagmar, believed to be the third-largest recorded in Norway for 50 years, hit Norway, Sweden and Finland at Christmas.

It formed as a weak low just south of Newfoundland on 24 December. The system moved across the north Atlantic, deepening rapidly to 971mb by Christmas Day.

Thousands of customers were left without electricity in Southern Finland. The storm was a rare event in Finland and gave the warmest Christmas period in half a century.