Meteorologists are predicting that the severe cold spell in Europe, the worst in decades, may continue until the end of February. This could result in more deaths and a prolonged increase in gas prices. Despite some potential changes in mid-February, the weather is expected to remain cold throughout the month. The extreme cold and heavy snowfall have already caused numerous fatalities in Europe, with temperatures dropping to nearly minus 40 degrees Celsius in some eastern countries. The Defence Ministry in Bulgaria stated that over 130 villages were still without power on Wednesday, with the army providing food and medicine. The country declared a day of mourning for eight individuals who lost their lives due to a dam bursting from melting snow, flooding a village entirely. Two people are still unaccounted for. Kristalina Georgieva, the European Union's crisis response chief, warned that the worst of the flooding is still expected. In Bosnia, authorities confirmed five additional deaths from the cold and snow on Wednesday, bringing the total to 13. In Serbia, authorities are warning people to remove icicles from roofs after a woman in Belgrade was killed by falling ice. The country is facing challenges with electricity production due to increased demand and ice hindering hydro-power plants and coal trains. In Croatia, strong winds have blown fish from the Adriatic sea onto the island of Pag, prompting locals to collect them from the shore. Cold polar air from northern Russia has kept temperatures below freezing across Europe for the past 10 days, with no signs of an early thaw. Officials from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) in Geneva this week did not dismiss the possibility of cold temperatures continuing throughout February. Omar Baddour, who oversees the WMO's climate data monitoring program, mentioned that there is a chance the pressure system causing the cold weather may start to lift next week, but it could persist until the end of the month. The "negative Arctic oscillation," which is causing the freezing temperatures due to a pressure difference between Europe and the Arctic, is expected to take two or three weeks to return to normal, according to Baddour, delaying any early thaw. Although the high-pressure system itself is not uncommon, experts were surprised by the sudden drop in temperatures following weeks of mild weather. Brown stated, "It's quite remarkable and somewhat perplexing how this winter has unfolded." Georg Mueller, a forecaster at Point Carbon, a Thomson Reuters company, stated that the cold spell in January and February is the most severe in 26 years. The current Siberian blocking pattern is so large that it is challenging to forecast its movement. Mueller also mentioned that the cold air blocking seems to be influencing the wind patterns, rather than the other way around. Brown stated that the unexpected cold block has persisted and shifted westward. Computer models are struggling to predict when the system will leave Europe. The cold snap has caused British gas prices to soar to their highest levels in over a decade, exceeding 100 pence per therm on Tuesday, a jump of over 15 percent. Russia reduced gas exports to Europe due to record demand, leading countries like Italy to boost imports from Algeria and use stored gas. Prolonged cold weather and higher domestic demand may result in Russia reducing exports to Europe once more.