Onset of winter in Europe: snow and ice cause traffic chaos…

Air traffic at Munich Airport is suspended until Sunday morning. The onset of winter is also causing problems in Switzerland.

Seemingly endless mountains of snow, clearing vehicles in constant use, chaos in the traffic – a violent onset of winter has brought large parts of Bavaria to a standstill. The heavy snowfall and black ice led to accidents and long traffic jams on the motorways, and Munich and Memmingen airports temporarily suspended flight operations. FC Bayern Munich’s Bundesliga home game against 1. FC Union Berlin in the afternoon has been canceled.

Numerous railway lines around the state capital Munich had to be closed, and passengers spent the night on trains in Ulm and Munich. On the other hand, sledders, skiers and even some surfers had fun on the Eisbach in the English Garden in Munich.

Air traffic suspended until Sunday

Due to heavy snowfall, flight operations at Munich Airport are closed until 6 a.m. on Sunday. An airport spokesman announced this on Saturday morning. Passengers were asked not to travel at all. Before departures on Sunday, passengers should contact their airline to find out the status of their flight, the spokesman recommended. The winter service is in action to enable safe operations again. Allgäu Airport in Memmingen also stopped flight operations on Saturday due to the ongoing snowfall. The closure should initially apply until 3 p.m.

A Lufthansa spokesman pointed out that the closure of air traffic in Munich would affect other airports. Around 20 planes that were supposed to land in Munich were diverted to Frankfurt, a spokesman for airport operator Fraport said this morning. According to a spokesman, Nuremberg Airport also picked up individual aircraft that could no longer head to Munich.

Rail transport in and to Bavaria paralyzed

Anyone traveling by train in southern Germany must be prepared for severe disruptions until Monday. A railway spokeswoman said this on Saturday morning. Among other things, overhead lines were icy. Munich Central Station will no longer be accessible throughout Saturday. The train connection was canceled. The railway said: “All passengers who would like to postpone their trip planned for December 2nd and 3rd in southern Germany due to the onset of winter in southern Germany can use their ticket at a later date.”

There were numerous accidents on the roads in southern Bavaria – according to the police, most of them resulted in property damage. The heavy snowfall caused long traffic jams on the highways. On the A8 in the direction of Salzburg, a traffic jam near Munich sometimes stretched for 30 kilometers, said a spokeswoman for the ADAC on Saturday morning. The A6 and A9 are also severely affected. The automobile club recommended temporarily refraining from unnecessary car journeys and, if so, only driving with winter equipment.

The police in Upper Bavaria South urged the population to stay at home. The police, rescue services, fire brigade and clearance services are in constant operation. Many smaller roads outside of towns are heavily snowed or blocked by fallen trees.

Thousands of households without electricity

Fallen trees led to power outages in parts of Bavaria. Many thousands of households were affected and service teams had been on duty since the night to repair damage to power lines and restore power supply, it was said.

In Munich, the residence including the Christmas market remained closed on Saturday, as did the castles on the Herreninsel in Chiemsee and Linderhof Castle in Ettal (Garmisch-Partenkirchen district). According to the Bavarian Palace Administration, Neuschwanstein Castle near Füssen in the Allgäu was not affected. In Munich, the Hellabrunn Zoo remained closed, as did the craft fair. The zoo and zoo in Straubing and Augsburg also remained closed and public transport was temporarily suspended in both cities. Forestry Minister Michaela Kaniber (CSU) recommended avoiding forests in the south and east of Bavaria due to the risk of snowfall.

According to the German Weather Service, the highest amounts of new snow are expected in the Allgäu region with 30 to 40 centimeters by Saturday afternoon. After the heavy snowfall in the Alps, slightly fewer flakes are expected on Sunday night, as meteorologist Robert Hausen from the German Weather Service (DWD) in Offenbach announced on Saturday.

The onset of winter also caused problems in Switzerland

Heavy snowfall on Saturday night also led to significant traffic problems in Switzerland. Rail traffic had to be interrupted in Graubünden. At Zurich Airport, 22 departures and 21 arrivals were canceled on Saturday morning due to snowfall. Swiss flights to Berlin and Munich, which was particularly affected by the snow, were canceled. Flights to Brussels and London also could not be operated.

When asked, airport media spokeswoman Elena Stern said that the winter service had been busy clearing snow all night long. There were also delays because the planes had to be de-iced.

15 centimeters of fresh snow in Zurich-Kloten

The weather service SRF Meteo reported on Saturday morning that there had been 15 centimeters of fresh snow in Zurich-Kloten on Saturday night. The Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research increased the risk of avalanches in parts of Switzerland on Saturday. There is a high risk of avalanches in Graubünden and the southernmost part of Valais (level 4 out of 5). Above 2,200 meters, the large amount of fresh snow and extensive snowdrift accumulations are “susceptible to failure,” it said.

The heavy snowfall threw the Räthische Bahn (RhB) out of rhythm on the rails. Several railway routes in the canton of Graubünden were interrupted or only accessible to a limited extent on Saturday morning. Replacement transport was only possible to a very limited extent. The Arosa line from Chur to Arosa was interrupted and the line was without power. On the Albula line, the section between Bergün and Samedan was interrupted. There were further restrictions in the Upper Engadine.

Train services abroad were also partially disrupted on Saturday morning. This is how rail traffic between Switzerland and Germany came to a standstill: the route to Munich was interrupted and traffic to Stuttgart was restricted, according to the SBB. On the line from Zurich via St. Margrethen SG to Munich, there were no more trains running from St. Margrethen on Saturday morning, as the SBB announced.

Traffic chaos and power outages also in the Czech Republic

Heavy snowfall has also led to traffic problems and power outages in the Czech Republic. Hundreds of clearing vehicles were in constant use on Saturday. A snow emergency has been declared in the administrative region of South Bohemia on the border with Bavaria. Around three quarters of a meter of fresh snow fell there overnight. A 20-kilometer-long traffic jam formed on the D1 motorway between Prague and Brno after a truck accident.

According to energy suppliers, more than 15,000 households were without power after heavy wet snow damaged overhead power lines. There were closures and disruptions in train traffic on several routes due to fallen trees. The first division football games between Jablonec and Teplice and between Ceske Budejovice (Budweis) and Hradec Kralove have been postponed to a later date due to weather conditions. (APA/dpa/sda)