ROME, Feb. 21 (Xinhua) -- The Italian Civil Protection agency issued a medium alert on Wednesday of snowy weather for the central and southern regions starting from Thursday, while extremely cold temperatures were forecast for next week.
Adverse weather conditions and snow could hit the country from the central Emilia Romagna region to southern Sicily, triggering a possible hydrogeological risk, the Civil Protection said in a statement.
Meanwhile, some forecasts predicted freezing Siberian winds would reach Italy in a few days.
Between the weekend and the beginning of next week, a wave of so-called "Buran" wind coming from Central Asia is predicted to spread over much of Europe, including Italy, according to Italian weather website InMeteo.
This would create "sub-zero temperatures for several days," it predicted.
Buran winds originate in Central and Eastern Asia, and are usually accompanied by ice, snow, and extreme low temperatures.
The cold wave would especially hit Italy's northern and central regions, and the Adriatic coast, while southern regions might be less exposed, according to the forecasters. Temperatures might fall to as low as minus 15 to minus 20 degrees Celsius up to an altitude of 1,500 metres, and minus 25 to minus 30 degrees at around 3,000 metres.
The cold weather would come after an exceptionally warm January, which registered temperatures above the record.
The last time Italy was hit by Buran winds was in February 2012, causing at least 54 casualties across the country. A shorter episode occurred in January last year.