Storm Helios set to hit Malta as Met Office issues yellow warning over gale force winds

Winds of force 8 to 9 are expected from early Thursday morning until Friday afternoon, potentially postponing festivities to commemorate the Feast of St Paul’s Shipwreck

The Met Office has issued a yellow warning as strong gale-force winds are expected in the coming days. 

Storm Helios is set to hit the Maltese Islands late Wednesday as a depression that is presently located over Algeria moves across to Libya and makes its way towards the central Mediterranean.

From the early hours of Thursday until Thursday night, very strong (force 7) Easterly winds are expected to sweep across the Maltese Islands, with gusts reaching up to 45 knots.

Thursday’s strong winds will whip up very rough to high seas, with waves expected to reach up to five metres. The public is advised to avoid coastal areas due to the possibility of flooding.

Rain showers are expected to become more frequent from tonight, with the possibility that they will be thundery on Thursday. The Meteorological Office expects to issue orange warnings for rain and wind on Thursday.

Strong winds are expected from early Thursday morning until Friday afternoon, potentially postponing festivities in Valletta to commemorate the Feast of St Paul Shipwreck on Friday.

The East-Northeast wind will become very strong (force 7 to force 8) by Friday evening, while Saturday will begin with a strong (force 6) East-Northeast wind before turning moderate to quite strong (force 4 to 5). 

Rain is forecasted through Saturday night, with rainfall ranging from light to heavy at times, particularly on Thursday and Friday.

The most recent gregale storm, dubbed the "strongest of the decade," struck the Maltese Islands in February 2019. 

During the storm, the highest wind gust in Valletta was 133 km/h. 

The powerful storm ripped over Malta, interrupting traffic, bringing down trees, cutting electricity, and causing pounding waves along the coast. 

Fish were thrown out of the ocean onto the Xemxija promenade, resulting in strange scenes of people braving the elements to gather them. 

The storm was the worst to batter the islands since October 1982.

Where did the name Helios come from?

The Malta Meteorological Office is a member of the EUMETNET– Storm Naming Central Mediterranean Group, together with offices in Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, North Macedonia and Montenegro.

At the beginning of every season, the central Mediterranean national meteorological services decide on a list of names presented in alphabetical order which are then used for storms that hit the region throughout the season and are associated with very strong winds and/or red warnings for precipitation.

The first member country of the group to be hit by a particular storm has the responsibility of announcing it. Storm Helios is the eighth storm that is being named by the EUMETNET group for the 2022/2023 season.

Such naming systems allow for more streamlined communications about storms and increase public awareness of severe weather events affecting multiple countries.