Deputy Head of the Tallinn Environment and Public Works Department Tarmo Sulg said: "We would ask all road users to be extremely vigilant, as driving on roads and thoroughfares is difficult and dangerous in icy conditions. We would encourage people to carefully consider their travel plans tomorrow, and limit their movements where possible."

Nearly 300 of the most-used public transport stops will be provided with stone chipping containers, which members of the public can use themselves to mitigate slippery surfaces, Sulg said.

"These chippings, generally made of granite, will also be provided in other potential hazard spots, as well as to housing associations, in the event of freezing rain," Sulg added, via a Tallinn City Government press release.

The aforementioned conditions are forecast any time between 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. in Tallinn, on Tuesday, December 20, while contractor partners of the city have been instructed to be on the alert for checking and mitigating hazardous areas, such as slopes and steps.

On the plus side, the freezing rain showers are forecast to be followed by sleet, which will reduces slipperiness somewhat if, when and where it falls.

The milder conditions, which will see temperatures above zero for Tuesday into Wednesday, will also mean that the effects of the extreme conditions will be shorter lived than might otherwise have been the case.

The city government also provides granite aggregate to housing associations and private homeowners, free of charge.

The Tallinn Environment and Public Works Department also reminds the public that anti-slip measures on public sidewalks are the responsibility of the building owner along sections of sidewalk which run alongside that property.

The same also applies to hazardous icicles, which should be safely removed, for instance by knocking them off with a broomstick when the coast is clear, and the snow on roofs – which can provide a potentially fatal hazard in thaw conditions, when large volumes of snow and ice can fall several stories in one go.

Poor road and sidewalk maintenance in Tallinn can be reported on 14410 (phone).

Previous ice rain conditions have rendered Tallinn sidewalks and roads almost literally impassable

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