Most of flights cancelled or delayed at Munich airport in Germany following severe snowstorm
BERLIN (DPA/CNBC/AP) -Severe disruptions hit Munich and neighboring regions after a winter storm unleashed heavy snowfall, causing chaos at Munich airport. German DPA news agency reported that 760 flights were scheduled for Saturday (December 2) but were cancelled.
Munich airport was completely shut on Saturday, initially aiming for a noon reopening, but later the shutdown was extended until 6 am on Sunday (December 3). As much as 12-15 inches of snow was expected in places, “a large portion of that within a period of 12 hours overnight into Saturday,” DPA said.
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The snowstorm’s impact wasn’t confined to Germany, affecting airports in Zurich, leading to flight delays and cancellations. Germany’s national railway too halted trains to and from Munich’s central station, urging passengers to reconsider or reroute their journeys. Stranded travelers faced an overnight stay on trains due to the suspension, AP reported.
⚠️⚠️Kein Flugverkehr bis morgen, 03.12. 6 Uhr ⚠️⚠️
Aufgrund der anhaltenden starken Schneefälle wird bis voraussichtlich morgen, 03.12. 6 Uhr kein Flugverkehr stattfinden. pic.twitter.com/HRxWLlqY3p— Munich Airport (@MUC_Airport) December 2, 2023
The snowstorm triggered hazard alerts from authorities in Austria and Switzerland that grappled with their own set of challenges. Authorities in western Austria, raised avalanche warnings to the second-highest level.
The region received a substantial 20 inches of snow overnight, heightening concerns about the potential threat of avalanches. This alert underscores the need for heightened vigilance and precautionary measures in response to the changing weather patterns.
Meanwhile, officials said that the weather has caused accidents and incidents across the region. Police in Lower Bavaria, the region northwest of Munich, said they responded to 350 incidents related to snow and ice between Friday night and early Saturday.
Officials for Germany’s Bundesliga also announced that a soccer match between Bayern Munich and Union Berlin, originally scheduled for Saturday afternoon in Munich, was canceled.
Police in Lower Bavaria, the region northwest of Munich, said they responded to 350 incidents related to snow and ice between Friday night and early Saturday, some of which led to minor to moderate injuries.
In Austria and Switzerland, the new snowfall led officials to raise the alarm about the danger of avalanches. The provinces of Tyrol and Vorarlberg in western Austria raised their avalanche warnings to the second-highest level after the region received up to 50 centimeters (20 inches) of snow overnight.
The Austrian railway company OeBB said Saturday afternoon that various stretches of its routes across the country were closed due to the storm.
In the Czech Republic, the major highway and some other roads were blocked for hours, trains and public transportation faced delays and cancellations, and over 15,000 households were without power.
The key D1 highway that links the capital Prague with the second largest city of Brno was in a standstill for hours after an accident that caused a 20-kilometer (12.4-mile) long line of trucks. Traffic jams also hit other parts of the highway as well the D5 that links Prague with Germany.
A number of high-speed and regional trains had to stop in the southern part of the country as cross-border trains from neighboring Austria and Germany didn’t operate, and some roads were expected to remain closed for the day.
With inputs from agencies | (Edited by : Shasi Kumar. Peter Dzionsko)
