Historic Snowstorms Sweep Russia; North India's Sharpest Cold In Years; Israel Shivers As Snow Hits Hermon; Turkey Buried; U.S. Arctic Cold Reloads; + Britain Locks In Higher Power Prices

The Arctic is spilling south - on a hemispheric scale.

Historic Snowstorms Sweep Russia

Russia continues to be hammered by one of its most severe snow events in a century, with the Far East buried.

Another burst of snow slammed the Kamchatka Peninsula on Jan 13, dumping 2 meters (6.6 feet) across large areas of the peninsula, with drifts climbing to second-floor windows in some neighborhoods.

The worst conditions were centered on Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and Vilyuchinsk, where wind gusts of 112 mph combined with the snowfall to produced blizzard conditions, road closures, and small avalanches even within residential areas.

Vehicles were quickly buried as roads became impassable.

This latest storm compounds what has already been an extreme winter. Since mid-November, at least five major systems have hit Kamchatka, with southern parts of the peninsula logging more than 300% of average snowfall by this date.

Farther south, Vladivostok has been locked down by relentless snowfall for days.

Authorities described it as the heaviest snow here in years. Snow-clearing crews are working nonstop, with officials warning it could take up to five days to restore basic road access, assuming the snow relents.

Schools have been closed through the end of the week, extending New Year holidays.

The winter of 2025-26 is shaping up as one of Russia’s most disruptive and snow-laden in generations. As reported yesterday, practically ALL of Russia is covered in snow:

Looking ahead, Siberia’s cold is forecast to spread west over eastern Europe.