Winter continues: cold, snow - and strikes too
The wintry weather continues to have Germany firmly in its grip. For the second night in a row, the German Weather Service (DWD) has issued an official icy weather warning for most of Germany, which is valid until 11.00 am.
There is also a severe frost warning for parts of Schleswig-Holstein. A DWD meteorologist said on Thursday morning: "The winter weather is continuing and it's getting colder."
A Eurowings plane skidded off the runway at Hamburg Airport on Wednesday evening due to black ice. A Eurowings spokeswoman said during the night that the aircraft, which had arrived from Stuttgart, had skidded while parking. No one was injured. According to the airport, operations continued as normal.
Road maintenance depots to go on strike
In three other northern federal states, the road maintenance depots are to go on strike. In Lower Saxony and Bremen, the Verdi trade union called on road maintenance workers to go on a 24-hour warning strike from 6.00 a.m. in the wage dispute between the public services of the federal states. In Schleswig-Holstein, Verdi called on employees at the state road construction and transport company to strike. The union announced that there would be "only a limited winter service".
There were no major restrictions on the roads in Schleswig-Holstein during the night. "It's all very frozen and almost minus 10 degrees. But quiet so far. With the warning strike, we'll have to see if everything works out," said a spokesperson at the Schleswig-Holstein situation center.
Only a few weather-related accidents
Only a few weather-related accidents were reported in eastern Germany: Near the town of Anklam in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, a car grazed the sliding sign of an oncoming winter road clearance vehicle on a snowy road on Wednesday evening. According to the police, the car then spun and collided with an oncoming van that was driving behind the snow clearing vehicle. Two men were slightly injured.
In Thuringia, there were minor incidents on the freeways in the Thuringian Forest region, reported a spokesperson from the local situation center. "Sometimes the odd car or truck that can't cope so well with the snow. Sometimes in front of the central crash barrier or in the ditch, but without major damage to property or personal injury. Everything that happens in winter."
According to the situation center, it was also quiet on the streets of Berlin. "It's much better than in the past two nights with several traffic accidents due to the weather conditions," said a spokesperson. According to the police, there had been almost 180 police operations due to traffic accidents in the capital by mid-morning on Wednesday.
"There is snow in parts of Saarland and we also have ice on the roads, but so far no major weather-related accidents," said the situation center in Saarland. The situation center in Baden-Württemberg also reported snow in places, but no particular accident black spots.
A meteorologist from the DWD said that there was permafrost almost everywhere during the day, especially in the north. In Schleswig-Holstein, the temperature dropped to minus 14 degrees in some places during the night. "That's quite remarkable for the region and time of year and not an everyday occurrence." There will be snow on Thursday, especially in the far south. "Snowfall will move from southern Baden-Württemberg to Bavaria during the course of the day. However, as the temperatures here are still slightly above zero in some places, not everything will stay put," said the weather expert.
- The severe winter weather conditions have led to road maintenance depots in three northern federal states announcing strikes, potentially causing further disruptions to traffic in these areas.
- Despite the ongoing icy weather warning issued by the German Weather Service (DWD), fewer weather-related accidents have been reported in some parts of Germany, such as Berlin, where conditions have improved compared to previous nights.
- The DWD meteorologist's observations reveal that the winter weather is not letting up and temperatures are becoming colder, which could potentially lead to an increase in weather-related incidents, such as accidents, on the roads during the cold months.
Source: www.dpa.com
