'Exceptional' late snowfall surprises Helsinki

Helsinki: Finland on Tuesday experienced exceptionally snowy weather for late April that caused chaos in commuter traffic, halted tramlines and delaye...

Helsinki: Finland on Tuesday experienced exceptionally snowy weather for late April that caused chaos in commuter traffic, halted tramlines and delayed airport departures.

Snowfall in late April or even in May is not unprecedented in the Nordic country.

There is even a Finnish word, "takatalvi", to describe instances of sudden cold spells making a return in spring.

However, the last time similar heavy amounts of daily snowfall were recorded in Helsinki on April 23 dates back to 1972 -- more than 50 years ago, Ville Siiskonen from the Finnish Meteorological Institute told AFP on Tuesday.

"Having this much snowfall in the south this late in spring is unusual, even exceptional", he noted.