Met Office warns of gale force winds

Winds might reach gale force over exposed areas of Malta on Thursday, the Met Office has warned.

The office published an orange warning on Thursday afternoon, warning that strong to very strong west-northwest winds are expected to become very strong and possibly reach gale force.

On Wednesday, the Met Office explained that recent unsettled weather conditions are being caused by a low-pressure system that has developed over southern Italy and is gradually moving eastwards across the Mediterranean.

Sunny intervals are expected to return between Friday and Saturday, but winds will remain strong. On Friday 9 January, winds are forecast to reach Force 5 to 6 from the west-southwest, strengthening further on Saturday 10 January, when they are expected to reach Force 6 as they veer back to a west-northwesterly direction.

The most unsettled and windy day is expected to be Sunday, when the weather will be marked by showers and very strong northwesterly winds, which may again reach Force 6 to 7. This will be the result of another low-pressure system moving from the British Isles towards the Baltic states by Sunday.

Temperatures are also expected to drop, with daytime highs ranging between 16C and 14C, while overnight temperatures are forecast to fall between 12C and 10C. However, the strong northwesterly winds will make temperatures feel colder.