Some eastern parts of the country experienced up to 80 centimetres of snowfall in 24 hours. Parts of the Goms valley on the border with Italy were cut off due to blocked roads.
Since Wednesday some parts of the Alps have received up to 2 metres of fresh snow. These are record quantities that usually only occur every 20 years or so, experts said.
During the night to Saturday, parts of the country experienced the coldest night of winter so far at up to -15 degrees Celsius.
There were several avalanches in the Bernese Oberland and the central canton of Uri on Thursday. There is a continuing risk for those living in these areas, as well as for winter sports enthusiasts.
“High avalanche danger will be encountered over a wide area. Outside marked and open pistes a very dangerous avalanche situation will prevail,” warned the Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research SLF in its avalanche bulletin for Friday.
The bulletin showedExternal link a level 4 high rating across a large swathe of the country, from Sion in the west through to Andermatt, and on to Chur in the east.
Some parts of the country are struggling to cope with the snow. Zurich’s public transport company halted all tram and bus services in Switzerland’s biggest city on Friday, saying snow had brought down trees and blocked access to three vehicle depots overnight.
But others are enjoying the unusually high snow levels, such as the penguins in Zurich Zoo (which is currently closed due to coronavirus regulations (video SRF).
External Content
Snowfall is expected to slowly ease throughout the day, weather experts predict.
First large-scale alpine solar plant approved in Switzerland
This content was published on
The approval was met with satisfaction by the project's organisers, but it also brings with it a certain amount of pressure.
Medieval squirrels may have ‘helped spread leprosy’
This content was published on
An examination of squirrel remains in the United Kingdom has opened up interesting questions and possibilities in terms of the history of the disease.
Swiss money laundering office registers record number of reports
This content was published on
The Money Laundering Reporting Office Switzerland (MROS) registered a record number of reports of suspicious activity last year.
Two teens accused of planning terror attack released from custody
This content was published on
The Schaffhausen judiciary has released the two teenagers from custody who allegedly planned bomb attacks in Switzerland.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
What winter used to look like in Switzerland
This content was published on
Snow in Swiss cities is sparse these days. This was not always the case, as historical black-and-white photographs taken between 1930 and 1970 show.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.