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**Preparing for Torrential Rain: "Completely Wild!"**
Climate scientist Bjørn Hallvard Samset (46) has been warning about extreme weather for a long time, and for Svein Roar Coldevin (54) and his neighbors in Gjøvik, the gravity of the situation has long since sunk in.
*Photo by Per Opsahl*
**By Per Opsahl**
Today at 01:12
### Summary
- The Norwegian Meteorological Institute has issued an orange alert for flooding in Innlandet on Monday and Tuesday.
- Climate scientist Bjørn Hallvard Samset predicts more extreme weather in the coming years.
- Svein Roar Coldevin and his neighbors in Gjøvik are bracing for heavy rainfall and potential damage.
They expect little sleep and a lot of water over the next two days.
“We’ve had some fantastic days this week with temperatures of 25–26 degrees and beautiful sunshine, but we’ve learned to keep an eye on the weather forecast and know what’s coming,” Coldevin tells VG.
It will be anything but dry on Torkeskogvegen in the coming days. Coldevin lives in an area with 13 single-family homes and some row houses that have proven especially vulnerable to heavy rainfall.
On Sunday, the Norwegian Meteorological Institute warned that heavy rainfall will trigger an orange alert, mainly in the Innlandet region, on Monday and Tuesday.
Forecasts indicate that the Gjøvik area could see as much as 70–80 millimeters of rain over Monday and Tuesday.
*Photo: Niklas Dahlby Markeng (left), Knut Markeng, and Svein Roar Coldevin trying to protect their vulnerable neighborhood. Photo: Private*
“It’s completely wild! We need to make a plan, and I expect a couple of sleepless nights,” says Coldevin, who works as a high school teacher.
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### Excavator Assistance
Extreme weather event "Hans" hit Gjøvik hard when Lake Mjøsa rose dramatically last year. Coldevin and his neighborhood experienced another round of severe weather a few weeks ago. They had to organize a community effort to limit the damage when torrential rain caused massive water flow around their homes.
“We haven’t cleaned up after the measures we took in August, and now we have to prepare even more. I hope the municipality organizes excavators to clear away debris and stones,” Coldevin explains.
*Photo: Large parts of Gjøvik were heavily affected by the extreme weather "Hans" from August 7 to 9 last year. This photo was taken on August 11, 2023. Photo: Heiko Junge / NTB*
The area will be soaked again, in stark contrast to the heatwave that has swept over much of the country in recent days.
“We’ve just experienced a strong heatwave caused by a persistent high-pressure system over Scandinavia and Northern Europe. This is likely also influenced by the very warm Mediterranean, which affects the heat from Southern Europe moving north. Due to global warming, the Mediterranean is experiencing much more intense heatwaves than before.
“This is a taste of what’s really to come in 10–15 years,” climate scientist Bjørn Hallvard Samset tells VG.
“In southern Europe, there are also warnings of potentially severe rainfall in the near future,” adds Samset.
*Photo of Bjørn Hallvard Samset, physicist and climate scientist at CICERO Center.*