Onset of winter - Weather situation in southern Germany eases, but air and rail traffic still disrupted
Flight operations have been possible again at Munich Airport since Sunday morning. The company announced this on its website. However, hundreds of flights have been canceled. And the main train station in the Bavarian capital is still closed, according to DB. Traffic on the roads eased again after the massive snowfall on Saturday.
There were still restrictions at the airport on Sunday: According to a spokesperson, around 560 of around 880 planned flights were canceled. Passengers were asked to check the status of their flight before departure. Flight operations were temporarily suspended on Saturday morning. This affected take-offs and landings at other airports.
According to a spokeswoman, travelers would have to expect massive restrictions on rail traffic in southern Germany until Monday. Traffic at Munich's main train station was still at a standstill on Sunday morning. The closure should last until at least 10 am.
Southern Germany: Deutsche Bahn wants to resume traffic as soon as possible
The railroad wanted to allow traffic to resume as soon as possible. This will initially only be possible on isolated routes and with reduced services. It was not yet clear when. Control flights with helicopters along the routes should be awaited, these are dependent on daylight, said the spokeswoman.
Traffic on the roads in southern Bavaria returned to normal on Sunday night. The authorities only reported minor accidents. "A few trees still fell, but there were only accidents with fender benders," said a spokesperson for the police headquarters of Upper Bavaria South. According to a spokesperson, accidents in Lower Bavaria were also "typical for the time of year". According to the police, the night was similarly quiet on the roads in northern Upper Bavaria and Swabia.
Not only Bavaria was affected by the winter weather. There were also weather-related problems on the roads in some areas in northern Germany. In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, a car left a snow-covered road and crashed into a tree. The two occupants were seriously injured in the accident.
Lows down to minus 9 degrees
Further fresh snow is not expected in large parts of Bavaria on Sunday. Only in the eastern low mountain ranges and in the Alps are several centimetres of fresh snow expected. Meteorologists are expecting lows of minus 6 to minus 9 degrees. South of the Danube, temperatures could reach minus 10 to minus 15 degrees in some areas. It will remain cold on Monday and Tuesday, but snow is only expected to fall sporadically.
The situation will be similar in some parts of Germany in the coming days. In Lower Saxony, on the North Sea coast and between the Ore Mountains and the Harz Mountains, occasional snowfall is expected on Sunday. On Monday, it should increasingly change to rain there. In contrast, it should remain dry from Berlin to southern Bavaria.
Read also:
- Despite the resumption of flight operations at Munich Airport on Sunday, around 560 out of 880 planned flights were still cancelled due to restrictions.
- The closure of Munich's main train station, resulting from the onset of winter, disrupted rail traffic and was expected to last until at least 10 am on Sunday.
- Deutsche Bahn aimed to resume rail traffic as soon as possible in southern Germany, albeit with reduced services on isolated routes, with control flights using helicopters depending on daylight.
- In southern Bavaria, traffic returned to normal on Sunday night, with only minor accidents reported, as the challenging weather conditions began to ease in some parts of Germany.
- Weather-related problems also affected roads in northern Germany, with a car crashing into a tree in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, leaving two occupants seriously injured.
- The coming days will see similar weather patterns across some parts of Germany, with occasional snowfall expected in Lower Saxony, the North Sea coast, and between the Ore Mountains and the Harz Mountains.
- The onset of winter brings challenging weather conditions to airports and transport systems all around Germany, including southern Bavaria and Munich, where many flights were disrupted due to the presence of disability, hence forcing passengers to check their flight status before departure.
Source: www.stern.de
