Heavy snowfall wreaks havoc on transport across much of Europe
Source: Agencies |
March 13, 2013, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
FRANKFURT'S airport closed, trains stopped running under the English Channel, and the French army was ordered to help clear roads - all because of a sudden dump of late snowfall on Western Europe.
Less prepared for the kind of heavy snow that regularly hits northern and eastern neighbors, France, Germany, Britain and Belgium struggled yesterday to keep moving amid the frosty, blustery conditions.
Instead of enjoying the onset of spring, travelers shivered in stranded cars, packed onto icy train platforms, or languished in airport waiting halls. Thousands of schoolchildren stayed home. Tens of thousands of homes were without electricity.
Frankfurt airport, Europe's third busiest, closed at midday after recording about 12 centimeters of snow. More than 355 had been canceled by mid-afternoon.
The airport reopened one of its four runways only for take-offs after a brief respite in the snowfall, but the snow then resumed. And it's unclear how much longer the other three runways would remain closed.
North of Frankfurt, the A45 autobahn was shut down after more than 100 cars and trucks crashed in a pileup near Muenzenberg. Police said dozens of people were injured but that no deaths were reported.
At Paris' Orly Airport, a Tunisair jet skidded off the runway because of icy conditions, according to the airport authority. No one was injured but the incident caused even further delays at an airport that has suffered cancellations and problems all day.
Airport screens flashed with red warnings after the French civil aviation authority ordered about 300 flights - a quarter of the day's total - canceled out of Paris' Charles de Gaulle Airport. Other airports around northern France were closed, and Brussels airport was forced to operate on a single runway.
Service on the Eurostar trains that go under the English Channel was suspended mid-morning because severe weather in northern France and Belgium forced operators to close sections of the railway, said Eurostar spokeswoman Lucy Drake. As the snow continued to fall into the afternoon, service was suspended for the rest of the day, Eurostar later confirmed on its website. Other high-speed train services around the region were also halted.
The French army was called in to help as civilian authorities struggled to clear roads and rescue people stuck in cars and buses on snowed-in roads, notably in Normandy, Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said on RTL radio.
With up to 50 centimeters of snowfall in some areas of northern France, the government urged people to stay home unless absolutely necessary.
In southeastern England, snow and ice stranded hundreds of motorists as temperatures plunged to as low as minus 3 degrees Celsius, and many motorists abandoned their cars.
Less prepared for the kind of heavy snow that regularly hits northern and eastern neighbors, France, Germany, Britain and Belgium struggled yesterday to keep moving amid the frosty, blustery conditions.
Instead of enjoying the onset of spring, travelers shivered in stranded cars, packed onto icy train platforms, or languished in airport waiting halls. Thousands of schoolchildren stayed home. Tens of thousands of homes were without electricity.
Frankfurt airport, Europe's third busiest, closed at midday after recording about 12 centimeters of snow. More than 355 had been canceled by mid-afternoon.
The airport reopened one of its four runways only for take-offs after a brief respite in the snowfall, but the snow then resumed. And it's unclear how much longer the other three runways would remain closed.
North of Frankfurt, the A45 autobahn was shut down after more than 100 cars and trucks crashed in a pileup near Muenzenberg. Police said dozens of people were injured but that no deaths were reported.
At Paris' Orly Airport, a Tunisair jet skidded off the runway because of icy conditions, according to the airport authority. No one was injured but the incident caused even further delays at an airport that has suffered cancellations and problems all day.
Airport screens flashed with red warnings after the French civil aviation authority ordered about 300 flights - a quarter of the day's total - canceled out of Paris' Charles de Gaulle Airport. Other airports around northern France were closed, and Brussels airport was forced to operate on a single runway.
Service on the Eurostar trains that go under the English Channel was suspended mid-morning because severe weather in northern France and Belgium forced operators to close sections of the railway, said Eurostar spokeswoman Lucy Drake. As the snow continued to fall into the afternoon, service was suspended for the rest of the day, Eurostar later confirmed on its website. Other high-speed train services around the region were also halted.
The French army was called in to help as civilian authorities struggled to clear roads and rescue people stuck in cars and buses on snowed-in roads, notably in Normandy, Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said on RTL radio.
With up to 50 centimeters of snowfall in some areas of northern France, the government urged people to stay home unless absolutely necessary.
In southeastern England, snow and ice stranded hundreds of motorists as temperatures plunged to as low as minus 3 degrees Celsius, and many motorists abandoned their cars.
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