Munich at a standstill: Snow paralyzes rail traffic in Bavaria
Published: Saturday, Dec 2nd 2023, 06:41
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Snow and ice have caused chaos on the roads and on the railroads in southern Bavaria. Numerous railroad lines around the state capital of Munich had to be closed on Saturday night, as announced by Deutsche Bahn (DB). Train services to and from the main station in Munich were initially suspended. Passengers in Ulm and Munich had to spend the night on trains. Connections to Switzerland were interrupted or restricted.
Subways, buses and streetcars also initially stopped running in the Bavarian capital. There were numerous accidents on the roads in southern Bavaria - according to the police, most of them resulted in property damage. According to the German Weather Service, the wintry weather will continue for the time being. Heavy snowfall is expected to continue in the south and south-east until the afternoon.
The police of Upper Bavaria South called on the population to stay at home. The police, rescue services, fire department and snow clearing services were in constant operation. Many smaller roads outside of towns are heavily snow-covered or blocked by fallen trees. The removal of traffic obstructions will continue at least until late morning. Train services are severely restricted by fallen trees and trees that have fallen on overhead lines. Anyone who has a breakdown or accident must expect delays if help is needed.
Train for stranded passengers
As reported by a dpa reporter, a train coming from Stuttgart had to be converted into an overnight train at Ulm main station in the early hours of the morning. Deutsche Bahn also provided a train for stranded passengers at Munich Central Station. According to a DB spokeswoman, it was initially unclear how many trains had to cancel their journeys for the time being.
The police in Bavaria reported numerous minor accidents on the roads. In Upper Bavaria, Lower Bavaria, Middle Franconia and Swabia, however, the majority of accidents were minor and resulted in minor injuries. In Swabia in particular, roads initially had to be closed due to fallen trees. On the Autobahn 8 near Weyarn (district of Miesbach), a truck overturned for unknown reasons.
On Friday, more than 150 take-offs and landings had already been canceled at Munich Airport due to the weather. The reasons for this were snowfall and low temperatures at the airport, said a spokesperson.
Up to 40 centimeters of fresh snow in the Allgäu
There was also a lot of snowfall in Baden-Württemberg. In Stuttgart, the fresh snow caused trees to topple, as the police reported. In the town of Vaihingen near Stuttgart, parts of a tree fell onto a power line. In most of the other federal states, it was also freezing cold, but no accidents were reported. Hamburg reported five centimeters of fresh snow. The snow clearing vehicles were in operation, it was reported.
According to the German Weather Service, the highest amounts of fresh snow are expected in the Allgäu with 30 to 40 centimetres by Saturday afternoon. In Saxony, new snowfall of ten centimetres is possible. In addition, frequent snow showers are expected on the North and Baltic Sea coasts and in the neighboring inland areas, which will spread to the northern low mountain ranges during the course of the day. Light permafrost is expected during the day. Only along the Rhine and in the Emsland region as well as directly by the sea will it remain temporarily frost-free in some places.
In the night to Sunday, severe frost with lows between minus 10 and minus 15 degrees was to be expected, especially in Schleswig-Holstein and in the south-western mountains.
©Keystone/SDA
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