Northern Europe waits for winter as US bears the cold

While part of North America is suffering through a record freeze, northern Europe is enjoying unusually balmy temperatures that are disturbing wildlife, traffic and the winter sports season. The month of December was one of the mildest in a century in the Nordic countries, according to meteorologists, with temperatures exceeding their normal seasonal average by 4ºC to 5ºC (24ºF to 30ºF) in Norway and Finland. Oslo experienced its warmest Christmas since records began in 1937, while in Helsinki and southern Finland the second half of December was the mildest in 30 years. In Koege outside Copenhagen the mercury reached 11.6ºC (52.9ºF) on Christmas Eve. The mild weather is caused by the same low-pressure area that has plunged large parts of the US and Canada into an unprecedented freeze.

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