SAPPORO 每 Heavy snow continued across the country on Wednesday, with more snowfall expected in the coming days as the country faces a cold front the likes of which is only seen once every few years.

As of 11 a.m. on Wednesday, the most snowfall was seen at the Sukayu observation point in Aomori Prefecture with around 25 centimeters of snowfall observed within six hours. Snowfall of over 20 cm was also seen in parts of Hokkaido and Fukushima Prefecture.

It is forecast that the mountainous areas of Niigata Prefecture could see up to 100 cm of snowfall in the 24 hours between noon on Wednesday and Thursday, and another 100 cm in the following 24 hours, while other parts of Niigata and mountainous areas in Toyama Prefecture would see up to 80 cm between noon on Wednesday and Thursday.

The Japan Meteorological Agency announced a warning for intense snowfall in Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa and Tottori prefectures Wednesday afternoon and an advisory in 22 other prefectures 〞 spanning from Hokkaido to Hiroshima Prefecture.

The weather agency is warning of possible avalanches, as well as traffic disruptions caused by heavy snow and icy roads.

Residents in the affected areas are advised to take precautionary measures to stay safe, such as making sure their vehicles are equipped with winter tires and chains as well as refraining from nonessential outings by utilizing remote work, for example.

The JMA announced on Monday that the Sea of Japan side of Honshu and Hokkaido is expected to see heavy snow from Wednesday to Sunday. The first peak of the cold front is thought to hit between Wednesday night and Thursday.

The weather agency warned that if the Japan Sea Polar air mass Convergence Zone (JPCZ) remains over the Sea of Japan and snow clouds continue to flow in the same area, certain areas could be met with intense snow.

JCPZ is a conversion zone 〞 an area where various winds collide 〞 that appears occasionally during the winter over the Sea of Japan. It appears at an altitude of approximately 1 kilometer and extends as far as 1,000 km, most often extending from the Baekdu Mountains in North Korea to the Hokuriku and Sanin regions alongside the Japan Sea coast.

It remains mostly stationary in one area and brings intense snowfall within a short period of time, at times causing natural disasters such as widespread power outages and collapsed houses while paralyzing traffic.

It typically occurs once to a few times a year, though not every year. Some particularly disruptive instances include the JCPZ that occurred above Fukui Prefecture in February 2018, which brought in historic levels of snowfall that resulted in massive traffic disruptions and a temporary shortage of daily necessities.