The Finnish Meteorological Institute issues a severe weather advisory if temperatures drop below minus 30 degrees Celsius in northern Finland. In southern Finland, an advisory is issued at minus 20. This curious system of two limits may sound a bit strange, especially as the limits are set with risk groups such as people with asthma in mind; and respiratory problems are, after all, similar regardless of location.
According to Niko Bolman, a meteorologist at the Finnish Meteorological Institute, the different limits are due to differences in culture between the North and South: "Compared to the South, people in the North are more used to severe winter conditions."