18. feb. 2023 05:45 – Updated 18 Feb. 2023 05:46
The violent storm Otto brings with it strong gusts of wind. This has led to major delays in aviation, and several flights have been cancelled.
The storm is ravaging large parts of southern Norway. The police in Agder have responded to a tree that fell across the westbound lane on the E18 near Grimstad. The road was quickly cleared.
No one was injured in the incident, but it caused traffic on the westbound motorway.
On the night of Saturday, the police in Trøndelag report very slippery roads in the Trondheim area due to freezing rain.
No major damage or accidents have been reported as a result of the storm.
Major delays in aviation
An SAS flight from Oslo to Haugesund was canceled this afternoon. In addition, two of Norwegian’s flights to Stavanger and Copenhagen were cancelled, writes VG.
There have also been major delays at Værnes airport, writes Address newspaper.
Ferries are canceled in Western Norway
Several ferries have been canceled in Western Norway, Vegtrafikksentralen writes Twitter. The ferry connection Mortavika-Arsvågen on the E39 was closed for a period, but was reopened. Vegtrafikksentralen asks people to follow the departures.
On the E134 above Haukelifjell, the Swedish Road Administration had to remove stuck cars before trying out convoy driving, writes NRK.
– Now there is only one car left to remove before the convoy can start driving, said traffic operator Anniken Island at 8pm on Friday evening.
Convoy driving and closed mountain passes
At five o’clock on the night of Saturday, the E134 over Haukelifjell was opened to normal traffic and there was convoy driving over national highway 52 Hemsedal.
The other mountain passes in southern Norway are closed. Vegtrafikksentralen informs that a new assessment will be made regarding the opening of national highway 13 Vikafjell at 9 a.m. on Saturday, and for national highway 7 Hardangervidda at 10 a.m.
Color Line is set
Earlier in the day, Color Line canceled its routes. Friday’s departures between Kristiansand and Hirtshals were cancelled. In addition, several of the departures between Larvik and Hirtshals were cancelled.
– We are working to give customers the best opportunities as the situation is now. We should of course have avoided this, but Otto is not a normal weather type, so this does not happen very often, said Erik Brynhildsbakken in Color Line.
The departures from Larvik to Hirtshals and return on Saturday have been postponed by four to five hours.
In Agder there were also several people who were without electricity during the Friday evening.
The storm is raging abroad
The storm is also ravaging other places in Europe. It is expected that the storm could be the strongest in Denmark in several years, writes Danish TV 2.
In Scotland, several thousand have lost power due to the storm, writes The Guardian.
