Too dry: August 1 celebrations in many places will have to do without fireworks

According to the private weather service Meteonews, the precipitation deficit in Switzerland in July was just under 45 percent.

There is no sign of the situation easing: It is expected to remain mostly dry through Friday before thunderstorms move in over the weekend, as Meteonews reported on Tuesday. According to weather models, the precipitation is not expected to be sufficient to alleviate the drought.

No loitering!

Since the risk of wildfires is high to very high in large parts of Switzerland, Meteonews expects many cantons to maintain their current fire bans. The weather service predicted that this would result in a ban on fireworks in many cantons ahead of the upcoming National Day.

Thus, on August 1, setting off fireworks is prohibited throughout the canton of St. Gallen. Fireworks displays on lakes that have already been approved are exempt from the ban, provided that a minimum distance of 350 meters from the shore can be maintained.

The canton of Glarus plans to decide on Wednesday whether to ease the ban on fireworks or bonfires. The municipality of Riehen in the canton of Basel-Stadt plans to forgo its traditional aerial fireworks display for safety reasons. Instead, there will be a ground-level, cold-spray fireworks display, according to a statement released on Tuesday.

Signs of drought became apparent early on

This month, the precipitation deficit was particularly pronounced in the south and in large parts of the Swiss Plateau, as reported by Meteonews. In some areas, precipitation deviated by nearly 100 percent from the 1991–2020 climate average. In contrast, there was above-average rainfall in Central Switzerland, the Valais, and around Lake Constance, according to the weather service.

Signs of the drought had already become apparent in the spring. After a temporary improvement, the situation has worsened again in recent weeks.