There were many accidents on Wednesday, especially in the south and southwest. Hundreds of flights were canceled at Frankfurt and Munich airports. Streets were closed and classes were canceled in many schools. According to the German Weather Service (DWD), the danger is far from over. Severe weather warnings were in effect in many places until Thursday morning.
Since the morning, the weather service has warned of a very high risk of black ice due to freezing rain in a strip from Trier to Frankfurt am Main. The risk of slippery roads is very high in the affected regions of Rhineland-Palatinate and Hesse. Specifically, it said: “Great danger to life and limb due to freezing rain with heavy ice build-up.” In addition, there is widespread icefall. Staying outdoors and traveling should be avoided at all costs.
In North Rhine-Westphalia, snow should begin in the morning. From 11 a.m. a severe weather warning was in effect south of Aachen, Cologne, Olpe and Winterberg. Bus and train companies informed their customers that there might be massive delays and cancellations from midday onwards. In several federal states such as Bavaria, Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia, schools remained closed as a precaution.
Munich Airport: 250 takeoffs and landings canceled
Travelers had to prepare for delays and cancellations. This applied to traffic on the roads, to connections by rail and in the air. Takeoffs were no longer possible at Frankfurt Airport from midday. A spokesman for operator Fraport said the machines might no longer be safely de-iced before take-off due to the persistent freezing rain. According to the airport, more than 250 of around 650 planned take-offs and landings were canceled at Munich Airport. There were also isolated failures at the Berlin capital airport BER.
For the time being, two Lufthansa flights from Munich that were supposed to arrive in Vienna-Schwechat on Wednesday were canceled, as was one from Frankfurt. The same applied to the three return flights planned to Germany.
Train delays and cancellations
Patience was also required for train travelers. As a precaution, the maximum speed of the ICE was limited to 200 kilometers per hour. Late in the morning, the company announced that the situation was manageable. The onset of winter will hit the railway the most in the midday hours, said a spokeswoman. “Then we also expect train cancellations and delays throughout the day.”
Numerous ICE trains were canceled between Paris and Frankfurt as well as Paris and Stuttgart. However, the French TGV trains run on these connections. The reason is that German trains are more susceptible to damage from falling lumps of ice and flying ballast on the French high-speed line to Paris.
Lots of accidents on the roads
In the morning, progress on the roads was slow or not at all. The police reported many accidents in Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria and Saarland. There were a few injuries, but the incidents usually resulted in property damage. The winter service was in constant use – even in regions where there were no black ice warnings.
The DWD expected long-lasting freezing rain with black ice across the Eifel, Hunsrück and Taunus as well as Spessart, southern Thuringia as well as in Vogtland, eastern Bavaria and the Erzgebirge until Wednesday evening. A general relaxation can be expected in the second half of Thursday night.
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