Weather - Snow chaos further restricts Bavaria
Dozens of centimetres of fresh snow piled up in many parts of southern Germany at the weekend - and caused plenty of chaos. There were power cuts in parts of Bavaria. Airports suspended flight operations on Saturday and rail services were also disrupted at times.
An FC Bayern Munich match was canceled, as was a basketball game. Christmas markets remained closed, and in some places local public transport also stopped running. Plenty of snow also fell in other regions of Germany and Europe, but no area was hit as hard as the south of Bavaria.
Helpers worked tirelessly to clear snow from roofs and roads, care for stranded travelers and clear vehicles involved in accidents from the roads. The Bavarian Red Cross (BRK) said on Saturday: "Stay at home if possible!" The risk of accidents is immensely increased. Bavaria's Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann (CSU) praised the work of the emergency services on Sunday for the fact that nothing worse happened at the weekend. However, the heavy weight of snow on trees continues to pose a danger to drivers and pedestrians.
Air traffic starts, first trains roll
The situation slowly eased somewhat on Sunday. In the morning, flight operations at Munich Airport resumed after around 24 hours. However, around 560 of around 880 planned flights were still canceled on Sunday. There were also cancellations at the Allgäu airport in Memmingen and the airport in the Scottish city of Glasgow.
At the main station in Munich, everything was still at a standstill on Sunday morning. Over the course of the day, long-distance services were gradually and occasionally resumed, according to a spokeswoman. This initially applied to the routes to Nuremberg and Stuttgart in both directions.
The railroad asked travelers to postpone journeys on Monday if possible. It will not be able to offer all long-distance connections and there will still be severe disruptions.
Heavy snowfall on Saturday night had largely paralyzed rail traffic in large parts of southern Germany. Trains covered in snow were unable to start, trees that had collapsed under the weight of the snow blocked tracks and overhead lines were iced over. At Ulm Central Station, for example, an ICE train was converted into an overnight train.
There were also flight and rail service disruptions in other federal states. Flights to and from Munich were affected at Hanover Airport and Bremen Airport. A spokeswoman for Hanover Airport said on Saturday that one runway was temporarily closed.
Accidents on slippery roads
There were numerous accidents on slippery roads at the weekend, especially but not only in Bavaria. Most of them resulted in property damage. In Baden-Württemberg, a 54-year-old driver died in an accident on a slippery road in Emmingen-Liptingen. In Prignitz in Brandenburg, a 34-year-old woman skidded in her car on an icy road, hit a tree and overturned. She, her 7-year-old daughter and a 29-year-old passenger were slightly injured. In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, a 19-year-old driver and his 18-year-old passenger were seriously injured when their car skidded off the snow-covered road near Loitz and crashed into a tree.
On Saturday evening, the Autobahn 1 near Wuppertal in the direction of Cologne was closed between the Wuppertal-Nord and Wuppertal-Ronsdorf interchanges because slabs of ice fell from a bridge. No one was injured, said a police spokesperson. The closure was expected to last until Monday morning. A specialist company is removing the ice from the bridge.
Thousands of households without power
A number of households in the Bayernwerk grid area were hit hard and were temporarily without power. According to a spokesperson, the area around Munich was one of the main areas affected. Trees had fallen on power lines, some of which had been damaged or torn by the weight of the snow alone. On Saturday afternoon, it was reported that many thousands of households were still affected and that new faults were constantly being added.
According to energy suppliers, at least 20,000 households in Austria were still without power on Sunday. In Styria, a high-voltage pylon was knocked down, causing a power outage in parts of the province. Households in Upper Austria on the German border were also still without power. Following the failure of mobile phone stations, it was also not possible to make calls with cell phones in Styria.
Neither soccer nor basketball
Thousands of sports fans and market visitors were also affected by the snow chaos. Due to safety risks and the traffic situation, FC Bayern Munich's home game against 1. FC Union Berlin on Saturday was canceled. FC Bayern's traditional Christmas visits to the fan clubs on Sunday were also canceled. "It's incredibly snowy, I've rarely seen anything like it," said player Thomas Müller in a video message.
The match is not expected to be made up until next year, as Union spokesman Christian Arbeit told Radioeins vom rbb. The fan club visits are to be made up for in January as part of a New Year's reception.
Munich's basketball game against Alba Berlin was also canceled on Sunday. According to Alba, it was impossible for the visiting team to travel to Berlin. It was initially unclear when the duel between the long-time rivals would be rescheduled.
No punch and danger in the mountains
Many places also had to forego a stroll around the market with mulled wine: A number of Christmas markets in Bavaria remained closed at times. This included the market in the inner courtyard of the Residenz in Munich, where roof avalanches had damaged huts. Zoos such as Straubing Zoo and Augsburg Zoo were also closed on Saturday. Public transport was also temporarily suspended in both cities. Hellabrunn Zoo in Munich and several castles such as Linderhof Palace in Ettal and Herrenchiemsee were also temporarily closed.
Fortunately, there were plenty of alternatives: people all over Germany enjoyed the unusually snowy winter weather for the first Sunday in Advent. With bright sunshine in many regions, there were plenty of day-trippers out and about, and children enjoyed the first real sledging of the season. Numerous lifts were running in the Bavarian ski resorts on Sunday.
However, it was dangerous in the mountains: In the Bavarian Alps, warning level three of the five-level scale initially prevailed above 1600 meters and thus a considerable avalanche danger, according to the avalanche warning center of the Bavarian State Office for the Environment. Even a single winter sports enthusiast could cause slab avalanches. Avalanches can also release themselves in steep terrain. "Overall, the snow depth is above average for the time of year at all altitudes," it said. The avalanche risk should slowly decrease over the next few days.
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Source: www.stern.de
