Latvia's coldest winter weather for over 20 years has sparked a surge in frostbite cases.

Temperatures plunging past the minus 33 Celsius mark at night have led to scores of people seeking treatment.

[Andrejs Isakovs, Frostbite Patient]:
"At first it ached.  I thought it would stop so I didn't go to a doctor. Then the finger turned blue and black and finally it had to be cut off."

The state burns center in Riga normally sees about 60 frostbite cases a year.

They've already seen almost that many in the past week alone.

[Andrejs Levins, Head, State Burns Center]:
"Of course it's very hard. We have only five doctors in Latvia specializing in frostbite treatment and two anaesthetists.  Our department is overcrowded, there are no free beds, and many of our patients have to go to other departments where we have to rent beds."

Weather forecasters admit it's rare for the icy conditions to last so long.

[Laura Krumina, Head, Latvian Meteorology Center, Forecasting Dept.]
"It's unusual for frost to stay for such a long time. The last time we had positive temperatures in Latvia was December 31st. In January it's not reached zero or any plus degree, so the frost has been gradually intensifying."

The weather experts say things will get a little warmer in the coming days but the big freeze is set to go on through the next month.